Akima
by Icedragon316
Summary: OC is taken from our world to Naruto's where she discovers about her past and 'other' side... but first Akatsuki and then Orochimaru wish to use her to their own advantage. Itachi,Kaka,Sasu,Naru, Neji,Lee,Shika, slight ItaxOc, Sakurabashing! COMPLETE
1. My World, Their World

Just a little heads-up note... I (as in the author) am not Akima (the main character) though I did add in a few similarities. I'm sorry if she seems Mary Sue-ish, I will be fixing that later on. Gotta set a foundation, ya know?

My World, Their World

"Ahhh, summer...." I sighed as I stood, slouching, on the grassy lawn, a glass of lemonade with one of those little umbrella-thingies in it in one hand. As my eyes roamed aimlessly across the endless blue sky, I sighed again. "How I loathe it!" I muttered, straw in mouth. I had always hated summer. It was so boring. And it was hot. All the time, especially in California, it was hot. True, it was boring in the winter, too, but at least there was something that you were supposed to do, even if you didn't want to do it coughhomeworkcough. I didn't like fall either, because that was when soccer season started, and although I like soccer, it meant work. As in dragging myself off my chair and doing exercise in the HOT sun. Because it is HOT, ALL THE TIME. This particular year, I had taken soccer camp (yes, that was boring too) so I wasn't looking forward to playing soccer on my team as much as usual, since I had already got my dose of soccer for the year. But the soccer camp was good for me because I was in really good shape. That would change as soon as school started and I became an overstressed, overworked lump like everyone else. Spring was horrible, because even with allergy medicine, I still had to sneeze 3 times every 10 minutes and run out of tissues in 1st period, causing me to sniff annoyingly throughout the rest of the day.

And now it was summer. What everyone looks forward to... during school at least.

"I hate my life..." I moaned, tilting my head down to look at the lawn. Sometime in the next hour or so, it would have to be mowed, weeded, watered, and all that other stuff, or else my stepfather might "expel" me from the house. So, I would spend the night in the treehouse in the neighbor's yard. They had put a pillow and blanket in there for their children long ago, and when the rope you were supposed to use to climb up there broke, they simply forgot about it. With my "mad ninja skills" as I liked to think of them, I was able to find little grooves in the tree that served as precarious handholds and could climb up there. My own secret place, on someone else's property. I kept all my valuables there... like a first aid kit...or... other things in case the situation got out of control. I hadn't had to use the other "emergency supplies" yet, though I had used the first aid kit. The neighbors...if they found out I was "trespassing" on their land... actually, more importantly, if my stepfather found out...there would be consequences.

Anyways, back to the lawn. It was still there, and it seemed twice as hot as before. The lemonade was all gone, the umbrella was drooping sadly, and it was time to do a little work. Sighing dejectedly, I started up the lawnmower and...well...mowed.

There's no point in describing the mowing of the lawn, since that would be boring, and I want to hurry on to the actual storyline and stuff...so about an hour or so later, the lawn was mowed (wow, really? I didn't expect that!) and I decided it was time to go inside and take a shower. But going inside meant going into the living room, and going there meant being near Guido, my stepfather, and that was a place best left alone. Maybe if I climbed in through the window... but no. The window was locked for security purposes, and furthermore, if Guido went out to look for me because he didn't see me come in, and then found out that I had been in my room the entire time... again, there would be consequences.

So I sidled in the front door, closing it quietly. There was Guido on the couch, watching TV, with a special bottle of something and an icky cigarette sticking out of his mouth. It seemed that he never moved from that position, except to go to work at the... actually, I had no idea where he worked. Hmmm. _'Someday, I should figure that out in case the need arises to run in the exact opposite direction of him._' I thought. Also, he occasionally got up to do a little threatening. He wasn't really large or anything, but damn, was he lazy. And bossy. He liked being king of the household, and I was the serving maid. Today he seemed almost passed-out. I liked it better when he was in the completely passed-out state, no matter how loud he snored. I immediately stiffened when his eyes turned my way.

"So... back a little late are we?" he slurred grumpily. I glanced at my watch. It was 7:05 p.m.

'_It took a little more than an hour to mow the lawn... but a little is a lot to someone who needs me to be his slave at all times_' I thought.

Guido had somehow or another fallen asleep, though I couldn't see how, since he had just been talking to me, but whatever. Fine by me.

I was about to walk past him when he started muttering. Interesting, I didn't know he talked in his sleep. I leaned in a little closer, though not close enough to get a whiff of his stinky breath. He said something close to the following...

"Box... on top of fridge... don't you dare look... yeah it's fine officer... I won't... I'm not..."

Box on top of the fridge, eh? Oh yeah, I was gonna look. Maybe there was money! I could swipe a few dollars, and he probably wouldn't notice in his state anyway.

I walked into the kitchen and took down the shoebox. It was really dusty, and way too heavy for paper money... Funny how I had never noticed it before. Several somethings were moving around inside of it... maybe it was a box of wine or something, though I couldn't hear any sloshing. But I could hear something else, like cloth rubbing on the cardboard. _'Probably to keep whatever's in there from breaking.' _I thought. Gingerly I held it with one arm and lifted the top, causing all the dust to fly around and get into my nose...and before I could stop myself...

"AH-CHOOOO!!" The mini-explosion immediately made me drop the box and I distinctly heard several large CLUNKS on the floor as the contents of the box spilled everywhere.

'_Oh shit...I broke it and now he's gonna kill me!' _I screamed in my mind. Peeking one eye open, and then the other, I gasped at what was strewn across the floor. There had been several objects in there. The first one that caught my attention was a Konoha head protector (took me long enough to even make a reference to Naruto, eh?). I loved that show. In fact I worshipped it. At school, there was an anime club, and every Friday one of the members would bring in an episode. Another reason I liked school better than summer. I couldn't download them because I didn't have a computer, so I would just try to remember the episodes... I had a really good memory, but watching was still better than remembering. A string tied around the head protector lead to a single kunai. It looked pretty sharp. Before I had time to "Ooooh" and "Aaah" I saw the second item.

It wasn't quite as happy-looking, but it also brought along a stream of memories. These weren't nice ones. It was a shiny revolver, jet-black, fully loaded, and the safety was off. I knew this because long ago, my brother had shown me how to use an Airsoft gun, which is almost the same thing as a real gun except it shoots pellets... when he and mom were alive. But they had been murdered in our old house, and the culprit was never caught... My real dad had been missing somewhere. He had gone on a business trip and never came back. My stepdad was my only living "relative" so there you go. He scored his own personal slave.

Before I really had time to think about why Guido had a gun and Konoha head protector, I saw the last item. It was what made everything unanswered over the years click into place, the thing that made me angrier than I had ever been, even when my mom and brother were killed. It was a gold ring, with a big diamond in the middle and 4 smaller diamonds surrounding it. It was my mom's ring. HER diamond ring. The one that had been stolen by the attacker. I knew it was hers... There was no way I could get THAT mixed up with another, because one of the smaller diamonds around the central one had fallen out and we had replaced it with a blue sapphire. And then I realized...the attacker must have been Guido. He had probably been drunk, and wanted revenge for the divorce or something... So he killed my mother. Probably with THIS gun. My brother might have seen, so he had to kill him too before my brother could call the police. He hadn't killed me, most likely because I wasn't there, and he was sober enough to know by the time I got back that he might get to keep me. So he plucked her ring and went home. He was a burglar. A _murderer._ _That_ was his job

Suddenly, I was enraged. Time seemed to slow down as I heard someone's footsteps behind me.

"Guido..." I growled, my face twisting uncontrollably. He stopped. I glared at his face, and realized he was sober enough to realize that finishing me off before I had a chance to rip him into little pieces or do what all 14-year-olds would sensibly do, run like hell and call 911, would be a good idea.

In slow motion, he dove for the gun. I became conscious of the fact that it was fully loaded, 6 shots, and that now would be a good time to run. But no, I'm mad, remember? Violent instinct was telling me to tear into him with teeth and nails, but I'm not Naruto, so no claws, and no fangs, and I didn't want to do superficial damage like Sakura by biting him anyway. So, the next available solution was the kunai.

I grabbed the kunai at the same time he grabbed the gun, but he managed to point it at me before I could throw it, or slash at him. After all, guns just have to be clicked, and kunais have to be _thrown_. Or stabbed with. Or occasionally slashed with. Moving on. As he pointed the gun at my face, I saw his eye twitch and instantly ducked. The blast was deafening. It rang in my ears, but the recoil of the gun left him momentarily off guard. _Now!_

I instantly stuck out one of my legs and spun, sweeping his legs out from under him. He fell onto the floor and banged his head, hard. You might think that would knock him out, him being drunk and all, but he was one tough cookie. I kicked his gun away, out of reach. There was a sharp implement in my hand. I could do it. It was so easy. I remembered the movies, the animes, the video games. Just draw it across his ugly throat. Just quick, and deep, and he would choke on his own blood and die. I imagined it happening... Guido spasming on the floor, blood spilling everywhere...His eyes would be all wide and bloodshot, he would gasp and choke and maybe cry out... and I would just watch as his life force went down into hell, where it belonged

That was disgusting. But he had to die. Pay for his sins. _'Remember mom...'_ I thought, my teeth grating. _'Remember her. Remember your brother. Remember their corpses. Remember who did it!' _I shouted the last sentence out loud. He was staring at me in terror, mouth wide. I glared back. But I couldn't do it. My hands were shaking so bad I didn't think I could do it if I tried.

He saw my hesitation, and this time it was his turn to kick my legs out from under me. As I fell, I threw the kunai. My aim couldn't have been better. However, I failed to recall that the Konoha head protector was still attached to it, so instead of lodging itself in his head, it was dragged down by the extra weight and sliced into his thigh. But I had thrown it hard, and it went deep.

He cried out in pain and I ran away, fast. And yes, I was stupid enough to leave the gun where it was. But come on, I was panicked, and when people panic, they become stupid.

I burst out of the door, and sprinted to the neighbor's yard, pulling myself over the fence. I tumbled onto their grassy lawn, only to come face-to-knee with my evil, evil, eeeevil neighbor. And he wasn't happy. I was trespassing you see, and it looked like he and his buddies were having a cookout. At that moment, I didn't care, I just had to get to the treehouse, get my stuff, leave, and never come back. If Guido didn't kill me, then he would pin the blame on me for attacking him, and I would go to juvy or something equally bad. So I had to leave. I had to become an illegal immigrant and go to Mexico, or Canada. Which was closer? I couldn't think. The only thing that came out of my confused brain was _run_.

So I followed my own orders and climbed up to the tree house faster than I had ever climbed before, and crawled into its dark interior. _'Sooner or later, he will figure out where I am. Especially with my stupid neighbor yelling bloody murder down there.' _As indeed he was, although instead of murder, he replaced that with more colorful words that I probably shouldn't write if I want to keep this in PG-13. Crawling swiftly in the quickly deteriorating light, I heaved up a wooden plank and grabbed my treasure. The first-aid kit, spare clothes, 3 MRE's (those are those army ration thingies that last forever. They're actually really good, because I tried one that my grandpa still had from the 90's, and it wasn't moldy or anything. Beef teriyaki. Mmm-mmm.), a flashlight, gloves, a scarf, $100 American dollars, a French-English dictionary, an extra pair of running shoes (in case I had to leave in the night. However, right now I'm wearing my shoes), a map of California, a compass, a toothbrush, and toothpaste. They were all in a pillowcase already, (see, I'm well prepared! Ok, I'll try to cut down on these parentheses) so I hoisted it over my shoulder, tied the end in a knot, and was about to climb out again when I heard an angry shout and a stifled scream.

Peeking out, I saw Guido dragging himself towards the tree, gun in hand, bloodied kunai stuck firmly into his leg, head protector still hanging on to it, also blood splattered.

"You..." he growled dangerously. Deciding that the back was the best way out of the tree, I turned quickly heading towards the back of the tree. Hearing a loud gasp from someone outside, I did the most sensible thing: threw myself forward onto the floor. The blast from his gun blew a hole into the old wood... right where I had been about a half-second ago. I mentally thanked whoever had gasped, because they had saved my life. I crawled swiftly, ignoring the commotion from outside to the best of my ability, dragging my precious pillowcase, out the back way and down the rotting rope that had previously been used by the neighbor's kids. I wasn't really handling it gently, so, being old, it snapped about halfway down, which again saved my life as the gun sounded off. Now it was time to run for it. So I did.

Vaulting over the fence, I sprinted down the street. Luckily it was getting dark out, making it hard to see. Two more shots sounded off, but they flew wide as I ducked and weaved, pretending it was like dodgeball and not a life-and-death situation. Gradually, he fell behind, after all, I had recently come from soccer camp, and he was old-ish. I decided that the bus would be out of the question, because looking like I was, sweaty with a pack of stuff, I would probably be perceived as a thief. So I ran... for the mall. Yeah, I wasn't really thinking straight.

It was only about a half-mile away, so I was able to run there in a short amount of time, and stopped right outside the entrance, because I didn't want to attract stares. I sat down and panted, and only then realized that I had forgotten the most important thing in my emergency supplies. You see, to "auto-cook" the MRE's and also to quench one's thirst, one needs _water. _I was so stupid, I felt like killing myself, right then and there. So, no water meant that I would just sit here until I felt better, because my money was precious beyond belief, now that I was an outlaw. I was trying to think of a plan, when the worst possible thing happened. There was Guido, still with a kunai in his leg and dangling head protector, still blood-streaked, still with a gun that I dully remembered had one shot left. I was really surprised he hadn't passed out from blood loss; there was so much dripping from his leg.

So I ran into the mall. He, upon catching sight of me, picked up his pace, and then we were playing tag with our lives again. He was "it". As soon as he set foot in the mall, shoppers started screaming and running and all that stuff that most people do in the movies when bleeding people are around. I ran, the pillowcase thumping on my back, ran and ran, looking for police, security officers, a big buff guy, ANYTHING. But there weren't any. They were on donut break, and the big buff guys were just as scared as anybody. So, run some more. Into a dead end, as fate would have it. Behind me was a propanetank. One shot in there and _boom_. He wouldn't even have to hit me. I was already dead. He knew it too. Chuckling a little crazily to himself, he slowly lifted the gun.

BANG.

I closed my eyes, as the heat of the explosion burned my back. It was extremely painful, but it wasn't nearly as painful as I thought it would be. For one thing, only one small part of my back hurt, right under my neck. But I was feeling extremely sick for some reason, and collapsed into the dirt. Dirt?

I stared at the ground. Yup. It was dirt, and there were also trees. Burning trees. A lot of them. And smoke. No gas tank, no tile floor, no Guido... wait, yes Guido. He was lying on the ground in front of me. And he was burned so bad I thought I would be sick. Wait. If he was burned that bad... I was the one closer to the tank. The explosion must have been bigger than both he and I predicted. I must be dead. It was the logical conclusion.

I stood up and examined myself. Nope, dirty, sweaty, smelly, but unhurt, except for my back, which felt like it was still sizzling, but I couldn't look at it and feared to touch it. I looked at Guido. My kunai was still lodged into his blackened leg.

I was in an unknown place, there might be wild animals, or dangerous people, the forest was burning around me and I might die of smoke inhalation, there was a very dead guy, me who somehow survived, a charred kunai, and my undamaged pillowcase. The head protector's cloth was almost completely gone, and the metal was singed.

Just as I began to try and think up a sensible explanation for all this besides me being dead, I heard a woman's voice. _Mom's voice..._

"If you are listening to this then I have passed away, Akima. Also, you must have been in grave danger to have activated the Konoha head protector..."

"...You see, Akima, I came from a different world. The world that you are in now is the one I lived in before I came to your world. I died in this world... and when we ninja die we are sent to be reincarnated on Earth. But through some fluke, I remained human, and also retained my memory. When I realized that my world was depicted as a popular anime in the new world, I tried to come back, but to no avail. One day, when you were 14, I bought that head protector. I took it everywhere, and tried to relearn my old jutsus, but seemingly I didn't have chakra anymore. I was so saddened by this... but I didn't give up. With you tagging along, I went to China where I had heard of something called "chi energy". It seemed very much like chakra, and I struggled to learn it, but I still couldn't. So I had the monks try to put chi into the head protector, to send you here when you were in danger of dying, because by then I had lost hope of going back myself, and I didn't want to waste all my efforts over the years. I then had them engrave these words into the protector... they are recording it as I speak now. I suggest that you learn the way of the ninja, Akima, at Konoha Village. Seek the Hokage's help. I don't have any idea of what time period you will be transported to here... Oh, and you probably shouldn't tell anyone the truth of this. It could cause trouble. You've got imagination, make something up. And there is no way back to your world without death, and if you do that you will most likely not retain your memory, so don't kill yourself, kiddo. Try to learn to appreciate your new life. Goodbye now, Akima, and good luck!"

I was SO confused. So chakra and chi were the same? Or at least similar? But that wasn't really important now. I needed to think of a plan. Problem 1: The forest is burning and I have to move from here NOW. Problem 2: I have no idea where Konoha Village is from here, so I can't get there. Problem 3: Should I just leave the dead guy here? Problem 4: I have no zenny or whatever it is they use for money here. Therefore, no food or housing. Problem 5: My back hurts, and I feel dizzy, and I'm tired. Really tired. So tired that I think I might just fall down and sleep here, next to that dead guy.

I fell down. Before my eyes closed, two dark figures jumped down from the trees. They came closer slowly. I tried to get up, to run, or at least say something, but my body was too heavy. One of the dark figures leaned in closer, and I recognized the face with surprising clarity. NO WAY. I'm definitely in the Naruto world, and at the mercy of the most merciless people ever.

Author's Notes:

Ya, they ending was rushed, especially the dialogue with Akima's mom. But, I thought it was too long already, and I wanted to get into the Naruto world by the end of the chapter. And ya, I added in all that stuff about how Akima got from here to there because I wanted an actual reason for switching worlds. Not like a lot of the other fanfics where people go to sleep and wake up there, or get sucked into a portal and all that stuff. See, Akima arrives in a big blazing fireball! Ya... I'm tired now. The next chappies will be better, cuz after all, we're in Narutoland! W00t. Anyways, read and review... but no flames! Constructive criticism is cool...


	2. Nice Murderers?

Author's Note:

I realized that in the last chapter I had completely forgotten to describe Akima in any way, shape, or form. So... I'll do that now. Akima is 15, has brown eyes and layered brown hair. The first layer comes down to just above her shoulders, the second layer goes down to her elbows and is usually tied into a low ponytail, while the first layer is not in the ponytail... Kinda hard to describe. So, imagine someone with short hair when you see her from the front, but long hair from the back. Anyways, she is about 5' 5 and is currently wearing a plain blue t-shirt and white shorts that end right above her knees. She wears... ninja sandals, of course! Umm... I guess that's it.

'Nice' Murderers? 

"Unghhh..." I groaned.

Judging by the feel of a pillow against my head and a blanket over my body, my entire 'Guido dying in a big fiery explosion of death and me being sucked into the Narutoworld' was a dream, and now I probably had to get up and out of the house before the snoring man downstairs woke up and decided that I desperately needed to do some more work. So, I cracked open one eye and stared at...brown.

My ceiling was not brown. I was quite sure of that. I was also sure that it did not have lots of bumps and stalactite-type thingies hanging down from it. So, I cracked open the other eye and slowly shifted my head to look to my left.

I was staring out of what looked like a cave mouth... outside were many trees and farther away, just so that I could barely hear the rushing of the water, was a river. Tiredly, I shifted my head to look right.

There were two big, heavy-looking packs leaning against the far dirt wall, a humongous sword wrapped up in bandages, and my green pillowcase, looking very out of place beside the other stuff. What was most noticeable about that wall, though, was that someone was leaning against. Someone I knew altogether too well.

Itachi wore a long cloak with red clouds edged in white on a dark blue background. His sleeves were long enough to completely cover his hands, and his black hair was slightly longer in the front than in the back. His Konoha head protector had a cut in the middle, indicating that he was a missing-nin. But what was most noticeable about him were his eyes. They were red with the fully developed sharingan. Those scary eyes stared coldly at me now.

Back in the "old world" I would have been really excited and happy to meet Itachi, just because he's so cool. That was disregarding his evilness and his habit of killing people and all that. That wasn't important back then. This was now, and it was pretty darn important where my life was concerned... at least from my point of view.

So I stared, and he stared back. But, I really wasn't good at the staring game, and furthermore, red eyes are unnerving, so soon my eyes began to water and I had to blink and look down. I quickly formed a hazardous plan. If Itachi was still trying to kidnap Naruto to take his Kyubi power, then maybe I was near Konoha Village, or near Naruto, who would eventually return there someday. So if I stuck with Itachi, then I could complete Step 1 of my long-term plan. Or actually the only step so far. Once I got to Konoha, then I would think about Step 2.

Then the little voice in the back of my head asked, "What the hell makes you think Itachi isn't going to kill you, much less let you travel with him? He's the heartless murderer who beat up Kakashi and Sasuke, remember?"

Well, so much for THAT plan. Might as well deal with the problem at hand...that would be the fact that Itachi is STILL staring and it's creeping me out. I remember mom said to pretend you know nothing and to use my imagination... alrighty then, looks like I'll be playing the role of the poor, innocent little girl who comes from far, far away...in... umm... a very tiny village in the northern fire country. It's called...uhh... think of something Japanese ...Kyoto! And, all my family members are dead (that part isn't a lie, sadly) and I was traveling to Konoha to...find a job! (Ha! There's Step 2 of the long-term plan!) Ok, ok, time to try out my pack of lies on Itachi...

"Oi!" I said sluggishly, pretending to be barely conscious. He just stared. That was really intimidating! Make him stop it!

"Who are you?" I muttered. No response.

"Where are you from?" ...nothing...

"How did I get here? Did you bring me here? Why are you ignoring me?" I was getting irritated. Might as well get up and leave. Would he stop me?

I tried to sit up and with a small groan felt my skin rip open on my back, below my neck. I felt warm blood trickle down from the wound... Oh yeah, that was that weird unexplained burn that had somehow gotten on my back...yesterday? A few days ago? I couldn't tell. Anyways, the more I tried to get up, the more it tore, so I decided to lie back down. Uh oh, my blood would stain the nice clean bed sheets... oh well. I just hope that when it eventually heals again, I won't be as stupid as this time and rip it.

So, reduced to staring around the room again, the bandaged sword caught my eye. I remembered the tall blue-skinned user, who had sharp teeth and gills and looked alot like a shark. In the anime, he had worn the same clothes as Itachi...after all, he was in the Akatsuki too, an evil organization bent on getting more power... or something like that.

"Where's Kisame? I wouldn't think he was the type to go out without his sword..." Itachi flinched, and I instantly realized my mistake, but before I could think up anything to correct it, Kisame himself appeared in the cave entrance.

He was just like how he had looked in the anime, gills and all. Not even glancing at me, he strode right up to Itachi, and fiercely said, "You told her my name?! Why would you do that?! We don't even know what village she's from!"

My good self didn't like to see Itachi get scolded for something he didn't do, so without thinking, I spoke up and said hurriedly, "No, he didn't tell me! In fact, he wouldn't even say a word to me!"

Turning to look at me, Kisame growled. "True?"

"Yes!"

Kisame stared at me for a few seconds then turned back to Itachi. "My apologies, Itachi-san. But you understand my concern, when I come back to overhear her talking about me..." Itachi merely nodded and then turned his gaze back on me. Amazingly, he spoke.

"That girl just mentioned your name when she saw your sword. I do not know how she knew who you were..."

Thinking fast, I stammered, "I-I, saw your picture in the bingo book of S-class criminals! And your sword! That's how I knew! R-Really!"

Apparently the answer satisfied Kisame, but Itachi's eyes narrowed suspiciously.

"And how did you get your hands on a bingo book?" he questioned quietly. Uh-oh. Were those books rare or something? I remember Kakashi, Kurenai, Asuma, and Gai had known these two because of the bingo book... well, everyone from Konoha should already know Uchiha Itachi... All those people were Jounins, so maybe you were only allowed to read or own one after a certain level. Well, what can my poor brain think of for an answer?

"Uhhhh...I stole it!" I chided myself mentally. Smaaaart. Me, steal something from a Jounin. Pishaw.

Now both of them stared. What is with staring today?!!

"Ok, you know what, would you PLEASE stop staring?!" I sat up quickly in frustration, and the scab on my back ripped all the way open.

"Ahh!" I grimaced painfully, falling back again, but I still had the sense to fall on my side, feeling the back of my shirt get slowly wet. With my bloody back to Itachi and Kisame, I clenched my teeth and shut my eyes so that I wouldn't start crying. Some ninja I am...

Someone came closer and kneeled next to me, apparently inspecting my blood-soaked back. A surprisingly gentle finger pulled down my shirt collar and then examined the burn.

"Well, we're going to have to fix this. No wonder it ripped open so easily." Itachi said softly.

"What? What's wrong?" I said, trying to sound brave, and not on the verge of tears.

I heard another person come closer... must be Kisame. "Oooh, that's a bad one. You're in for a rough time, kid." He chuckled.

"What's wrong?" I repeated, a little scared. Was it infected or something?

"Your shirt is stuck in the scab. Not just in one place either, it looks like it had lots of wrinkles." Kisame said.

My shirt was stuck in the scab? But then to get it out, they would have to...oh no.

I heard the distinctive sound of metal scraping behind me. No, no, there had to be a better way than that, there's always a better way...

"First, I'm going to have to cut open your shirt in the places it isn't attached to your skin so I can get a better look at the scab. Don't worry, I'll just cut a 'U' shape from your collar, ok?" Itachi said consolingly.

I mumbled an "eep" in reply and felt my shirt being surgically cut, miraculously not scratching my skin. Whatever he was using must be really sharp to cut the cloth so easily... Don't think about that!

"Ready? This will take a while, so get yourself comfortable... oh, and Kisame, get her something to bite on. Also..." there was a short pause for dramatic effect. "Get some rope, she might spasm a bit, and that would make me cut deeper than needed."

I think he was enjoying himself by making me terrified out of my mind. Kisame was probably enjoying himself too, because when he gave me a piece of leather to bite on, he snickered. Or maybe it was because he had done something to the piece of leather. But that didn't matter to me, as I turned over so that my back was facing up and Kisame tied my hands together above my head and my feet together.

"Kisame, you should probably hold her down to keep the spasming to a minimum. Are you ready...what's your name again?"

There was an expectant silence. I said around the leather, "Akima."

"Alright then, are you ready, Akima-san?"

"No."

"Ok, I'm starting anyway. Don't scream."

'_Fat chance,'_ I thought. _'I'm not so wimpy that I would scream. What does he take me for?'_

His first little stab almost made me cry again, and if I wasn't biting into the leather, I almost definitely would have screamed, loud and long. It was a long and excruciatingly painful process, and it felt like he was gouging chunks of my skin up with a rusty needle or something. It was even more painful than actually getting the burn. I spasmed periodically, and Kisame held my neck down with one hand and my arms down with the other. After what had seemed like hours, it was done and a huge bandage was taped over the gouged-out hole in my back. I turned my cramped neck around, spat out the piece of leather and came face-to-face with the little pieces of me lying all bloody on the ground. I also saw Itachi's hands all blood-splattered, and he hastily put them behind his back.

"Well?" he said.

"Well what?" I replied sullenly.

"Hn. I just spent a long time picking out pieces of YOUR flesh and getting my hands dirty and having to change your bedding..."

"Oh right. Thanks a lot. I owe you two favors now. But my bedding doesn't have to be changed.

He sniffed. "Of course it does. It's all bloody, and you're lying in it. Can you get up?"

"Probably."

I sat up with just as much pain as before I had the "operation" done, but nothing ripped, so I just bore with it. Apparently I had gotten used to pain. Itachi scooped up the bottom sheet and crumpled it into a ball, then placed it on the floor. His hands flashed into different seals that I didn't have time to even see completely, much less identify them.

"What are y-"

"Grand Fireball no Jutsu" he whispered quickly so that I could barely hear it and then blew out a large flame, completely toasting my sheet into ashes that blew away in the breeze.

I was astonished. Seeing an anime character blow fire on the computer screen was one thing, seeing it in real life was another. It was cool!

"Wow! Could you teach me that???" I squealed.

Itachi was silent for a moment, studying me closely. Then he said,

"You don't know this jutsu?"

"No! I don't know any!"

"None? Well... you have chakra but... there's...I just don't know.

"Awww..."

I hadn't really expected him to teach me anyway... but wait, I had chakra? That was impossible; my mother lost hers when she came to my world... So did I inherit it? Maybe it only exists in the Naruto world.

"But... here. I'll give you this scroll that I... found... a while ago. Most of them will probably be too advanced for you, but you can try them anyway."

He rummaged through his pack and came up with a scroll as thick as my clenched fist, and about the same length as my hand from wrist to middle finger. It was white...but had no characters on it. I was about to open it when Itachi said,

"Ok, time for food, and then you have to take a nap, because you need to have enough energy to move out tonight."

I was speechless for a moment. "I'm going with you?"

"Yes."

"That's cool...but why at night?"

He smirked. "Hn. Did you forget who we are?"

My mouth dropped. I had completely forgotten that they were murderers. And they were trying to capture Naruto. At least, that was probably what was happening at this point in time. Better find out.

"So, what are you after?" I said as casually as possible, stuffing the scroll inside my pillowcase.

Itachi gave me the none-of-your-business look and then said, "I'm going to go kill a couple rabbits for tonight's dinner. Stay here."

"No wait. I have food! Don't kill any poor rabbits!"

Itachi stopped and looked back. "Poor rabbits? In this world, you have to kill to eat, and eat to survive. And your food should be saved for an emergency."

"Oi, Itachi-san. I can only find one rabbit. All the others were scared off by that huge explosion in the forest yesterday." Called Kisame from down the path.

"Ahhh...MY explosion?" I inquired.

"That's the one. What kind of jutsu did you use to finish that man off anyway?" said Kisame.

"Ohhh, that was.... I didn't really use any..." I muttered, and looked at the ground. I couldn't tell them it was caused by a gas explosion... Did they even know what that was?

There was an uncomfortable silence, which Itachi broke.

"Well, if there's only one rabbit then looks like one of your precious rations will have to be eaten, Akima-san..." said Itachi quietly.

"No problem! I'll go get some water! Can I borrow a bottle or something?"

Kisame gave me an empty bottle, which I took and promptly sped off towards the river, as if I had never been injured at all.

_At the river_

I dunked the bottle in the water and resurfaced. Humming to myself peacefully as I trotted back up the trail, I never noticed the extra pair of eyes watching from the trees... Biding their time, waiting for the perfect moment to strike.

_At the cave_

"So what horrible plan have you thought up, Itachi-san?" said Kisame. "I know you didn't save that girl just because you wanted to be nice."

"Don't worry. Everything is falling into place perfectly... though I am curious as to her past. She was lying when she talked about seeing you in the bingo book, I could tell. Also, that explosion that she appeared in... even I don't know a fire jutsu of that level. And yet her surprise at seeing my Grand Fireball no Jutsu was real... Also, I need to ask her about this..." Itachi said, holding up the charred Konoha head protector.

"Yes, we should ask her of her origins..." Kisame replied.

"Hey! I got the water!! Who wants to watch me cook my food without fire??" I yelled, jogging up the path. _'I bet they've never seen something like this before... then again, a lot of the younger people in my world probably have never seen it either.' _I thought, mentally chuckling.

"I must admit I'm curious as to how this will turn out..." Kisame said. Itachi merely nodded and commanded me to show him.

"Ok, first I need to borrow something sharp, so that I can cut it open..." Itachi tossed me my blackened kunai, which I swiftly dodged, causing it to sink into the hard cave floor, point first.

"Don't throw sharp things! Jeez, you could've killed me!" I squeaked. Itachi exchanged glances with Kisame, and then said,

"Sorry, but I thought you would be able to catch it." He smirked.

"My God, you must think I'm a ninja or something, talking about catching a knife like it was no big deal..." I grumbled.

Itachi held up the charred head protector and said, "Well, considering this..."

"It's not mine! That's...uhh...someone else's..." I ended in mutter. Well, whose is it? Should I say it was my mom's? Or should I say it was that dead guy, Guido's? Or did I find it somewhere? Steal it? Killed a ninja from Konoha and took it from him or her? Or maybe fake knowing about it at all and professing no idea about how it got near me?

Itachi and Kisame stared. I really wish they would stop that! I had to say something. If they believed I had stolen the bingo book from a Jounin, then maybe they'd buy that I stole a head protector too. "Umm, I stole it... from someone from Leaf..."

Itachi was quiet for a moment and then said, "So, show us your magic 'cooking without fire' food."

"Hai..." I said quietly, and then regained my enthusiasm. "Ok, so first you have to open the top." I bent down to retrieve my kunai and sliced the top off easily. "Then, you take out all the food packets and put the ones that need to be cooked inside this special packet here, see?" I held up the cooking packet. Then, add water and close the top, and wait for 10-20 minutes, depending on whether you want the meat to be well-done or rare, and open it and eat!" I zipped up the top of the packet and sat down, feeing like I was on one of those cooking shows on TV.

Itachi and Kisame stood still for about a minute, eyes on the packet until I said, "You know, it's going to take about 15 minutes since I like my meat medium, so you don't really have to stand there for the entire time..."

Itachi said, "I know, I'm looking for the chakra that must have been used to make it swell up like that and increase its temperature, but I can't seem to find it..." I glanced at his eyes, and the sharingan wheels were, indeed, spinning.

"There isn't any chakra involved, I know that for sure. I think it has sodium acetate or something in there and it bonds with the water, creating heat energy..." I said, remembering when I had studied heat packs in chemistry class. I think this was the same process, but I'm not sure.

Kisame said, "I'm just waiting for that thing to explode..." referring to the now bubbling and swiftly expanding packet. _'Wait, was I supposed to close the top?' _I wondered. The heat pack had been in an enclosed packet, but I couldn't remember whether this was supposed to close or not. If not, then someone was going to get burned...

But the packet didn't explode, and everyone got to try some beef teriyaki... cooked without fire. Itachi still seemed amazed by how this worked and reverently said that it would make rationing a lot easier once he learned how to make it. I replied that it would never spoil as long as the packet was kept closed, and that the one that we had all eaten out of was at least 10 years old. (That had to do with irradiation or something, I can't remember, but it's true.) This knowledge made Itachi, who was drinking some water, choke and spit it out all over the ground, and then went into a coughing fit, while Kisame and I laughed. Afterwards, he laughed at himself too, and then said that he would definitely need to learn how to make those.

Anyways, after the early dinner/late lunch, I was sent to bed, even though I complained bitterly that I wasn't tired and should be allowed to stay up. But, when my head hit the pillow, I went straight to sleep.

_A little later, away from the cave_

"Well, are you going to tell me your master plan, Itachi-san?" Kisame asked.

"It isn't perfect, but so far I think we can use her to distract Jiraiya away from Naruto long enough to kidnap the demon child..." Itachi replied softly.

"We've already tried that method and it didn't work, remember? Jiraiya won't fall for the same trick twice." Kisame said without thinking. Itachi was silent. Kisame quickly realized how rude he had been and said, "But it could work since she is younger this time. Perhaps we could put her in a dangerous situation, and have him try to save her."

"I think that's a good idea. How about we push her off a cliff? That would require quick saving, and Jiraiya would probably react without thinking."

"Hmmm. And I thought you were losing your touch..." Kisame chuckled.

"Hn. That would never happen. But we have to keep up the pretense of being nice murderers. This could prove to be challenging." said Itachi.

"But you've always liked to challenge yourself, haven't you, Itachi-san..." Kisame said, smirking.

"After all, I have already tested my power...it's about time to test something else." Itachi said, perfectly serious.

"You and your tests, Itachi-san, really..." Kisame laughed quietly.

Kisame and Itachi stood in silence for a while, each with their own thoughts... until Itachi said, "Where do you think she's from? She's definitely not from around here... And she lies a lot. She lied about the bingo book for sure, but with the head protector, she wasn't telling the _complete_ truth. Later tonight, when we have to move, we should ask her where she came from, why she's here, and I WILL convince her to tell me how she managed to blow up the forest like that. Also, who was that dead man with her? Her kunai was in him, so he must have been her enemy..."

"But it's strange about that explosion... She hurt herself too, but in the back... Is it possible it is one of those forbidden jutsus that brand you? I've never seen one before, only heard... The class of techniques that are extremely powerful, but are double-edged swords... But to trade a huge explosion for only a medium-sized burn like that... I'd take it." Said Kisame.

"Perhaps..." was Itachi's soft, one-word reply.

_Later, in the cave_

"AH-CHOO! AH-CHOO! AH-CHOO! sniff/snort Ugh... It was about time I sneezed... I was wondering if I had lost my allergies or something." I muttered, mostly to myself.

"Well, I was about to wake you up anyway, so your allergies kicked in at the right time. It's time to go." Itachi said, standing up.

"What time is it?" I yawned, also getting up and stretching.

"10:00 PM. You slept for 5 hours."

"Whaaat? And now we have to go running through the forest half-asleep? You're kidding me!"

"You're the only one half-asleep. Kisame and I have been up. And now, roll up that bedding and give it to me... after all, it's mine."

I stared down at the bedding. It was his?? I hadn't even thought about where it had come from or anything... and the other one that he had burnt because I bled all over it...

"Wait... are you telling me that... you and Kisame don't have a bed because of me?"

"Well, the one that was completely ruined was Kisame's, and that one is still good, but you don't have a bed at all, so..."

"Ahhh!! I'm so sorry!! I'll, uhhhh, get you a new bed when we reach a town! Ummm... later on, when I get some money..." I ended in a mumble.

"That's alright; I'm used to sleeping without a bed so it's not that big of a deal." Itachi said. "Anyways, let's check on your burn and then we have to go. I think someone might be tracking us..."

Upon hearing that, I didn't waste anymore time and sat up to roll up the sheets.

"I have to check on your burn, Akima-san..."

"Oh yeah..." I lay down on my stomach and waited, hands under my chin. Itachi knelt down and inspected my back closely.

"It's fine. It shouldn't hinder you very much unless you split it again, so be easy on it, ok? Don't ruin anymore bed sheets." He smirked.

"...sorry..." I mumbled quietly.

"Ok then, let's go!" Itachi grabbed my arm and dragged me effortlessly outside, then let go and did a ninja-jump into the trees.

'_Yeah... I can do that..._' I thought. _'Guess I'll just run along below... not sure if I'll be able to keep up though... these people are ninjas after all._'

I set off running below them, but Itachi swooped down and said, "Don't do that, you'll leave tracks. Come up into the trees."

I looked at the ground, shuffled my feet, then said, "I can't jump that high."

Itachi stared. I remembered that even Konohamaru and his friends were able to jump 10 times their height in the anime, and they were still in Ninja Academy. I was _deeply _embarrassed, but, NO ONE can jump that high! At least where I had come from they couldn't.

"Yes, you can. It's easy."

"I can't."

"Just try."

"I'm telling you, it's impossible."

Kisame dropped down out of nowhere and said, "What's the hold-up? We have to move quickly."

"She says she can't jump high enough to reach the tree branches."

"What? Just try!"

"I can't! I'm sorry, but where I come from, that's just not possible!"

Itachi's eyes narrowed and I saw the sharingan wheels rotating. First he looked at me dead in the eyes, then he looked at my feet and said, "You can jump _much _higher than even these treetops. Try it now, or we will have to leave you behind."

"Fine! Fine! Watch me make a complete idiot of myself!" I shouted, my face burning from the embarrassment that I was about to receive. I closed my eyes, crouched down a little, and gave it all I got. Instead of going up about a foot and then coming down, I felt myself soaring into the air, past the trees and their tops...it was like flying. Then, I slowed down and felt the pull of gravity...

I imagined myself hitting the ground and popping like an overripe cantaloupe. Luckily, Itachi jumped up to catch me and landed on a branch. "See? Now, don't jump that high unless there's something to jump onto, or else you won't be able to land without hurting yourself. Now, we really have to go. No more nonsense about not being able to jump this high. Sheesh."

"Ok..." I said breathlessly. Ohh, but it was even more fun than Drop Zone! And much more life-threatening. I think I like the Naruto world more than I thought.

Author's Notes:

And another chapter done... joy. People like how Narutoland has less gravity? Instead of making Akima perfect, I blame it on the world. I mean, it's physically impossible to jump higher than one's own head... on Earth, at least. (But she's not on Earth, is she?) Read and review... same rules apply from last chappie, no flames, and constructive criticism is a-ok.


	3. A Few Surprises Or Maybe Not

Look, look! Reviews!! Yay!! All of you must review again pleez. And everyone else who DIDN'T review!! That means you hakia seana! (itachi is mine!! Mine!!!!) 

TehRadicalEdward- Yay!! You know, I never realized that you reviewed until today. And even though you're REALLY REALLY behind in watching Naruto (#2 still isn't done transferring to you yet, as I write this) Ahh, should Akima fall to her doom? Maybe. Then the main character could be Itachi with all of his evilness.

Death's Gift- w00t! I read your story, and reviewed it too! I'm glad you like my story, you're one of the (apparently) few people that do. Ah are you a rival Itachi-luver? Most likely there will be no pairings in this, so don't worry about Akima stealing Itachi or anything... (Now there's an idea! Hmmm...) You update yours too!

Pink-kitty- hmmm, Akima has... (gestures) this much chakra. Sorry, can't answer that.Why that has absolutely NOTHING to do with the storyline!! (Looks around nervously) As for super-strength like Tsunade (and Sakura, now, apparently) I don't really want to do that. She'll get stronger later... see, I'm trying to not make this a Mary-Sue character, which is a lot harder than in thought it would be, so yeah... But Tsunade and Sakura will be in this (for a very short time. I border on Sakura-bashing next chappie.)

Dragon Man 180- Cookies for everybody! But you get EXTRA cookies because you're my first reviewer!! W00t! and I read your profile, and I think you might be my long lost twin or something because you like everything I like, meaning dragons, fantsy/sci-fi books,... ok I like SOME gory animes but no hentai ones, hmm, mangas I like some... and all that other stuff is a given. Megaman X rules!! I've beaten it like 10 times. Ok, maybe 5, and only once without cheating (that was hard!) As for your review... hmm, surprises? This title is dedicated to you.

A Few Surprises... Or Maybe Not 

After about an hour of jumping through the trees, I finally managed to get the hang of it. I had almost slipped and fallen many, many times, and then realized that I should land with both feet, not just one. Itachi and Kisame thought that it was funny whenever I slipped, and kept asking me questions like, "Is this seriously your first time tree-jumping?" and "Why didn't you think you could jump so high? Anybody can do it." and "Why do you keep looking amazed when one of us does a flip?" causing me to answer, "Yes, because where I come from it's not possible, and because I think you're going to fall." Little did I know, I was in for a lot of even tougher questions. It began with Itachi.

"Where do you come from anyway? It must be a very strange place if it's impossible for people to jump into the trees."

I quickly recalled my made-up story from this morning... or was it last morning? Right now it was probably about midnight, so... whatever. That doesn't even matter. Anyways, I splurted out my load of lies, improvising where I could.

"I grew up in a tiny village that no one has ever heard of called Kyoto in the northern fire country. I've been traveling for a while now, trying to get to Konoha Village to find a job of some sort, and am completely lost. All of my known relatives are dead... so there's nothing to go back to anyway..."

"What about that man that you burnt to a crisp?" Kisame asked, looking over his shoulder.

"He was... I don't really know. _'Shoot, shoot, think up something quick!'_ I cried to myself. "Uhhh...." My mind was completely blank. I couldn't think of anything at all. Except for one thing, and it was a really stupid idea. "He was a debt collector... my mom and dad had run up a lot of debt, and when they died, they left it behind... As I said earlier, I don't have any money, so I had to get rid of him."

"And the explosion? How did you do that?" Itachi inquired, listening carefully so as to not miss anything... He knew she was spitting lies left and right, especially after the long pause before the debt collector part, but she just _might _let a clue slip.

"I don't know what happened... maybe he had a lot of explosion notes on him or something..." I said, remembering Gaara's uncle, Yashamaru, who had blown himself up in an effort to kill little demon Gaara. I made a mental note to befriend Gaara if I ever met him... poor little demented schizophrenic psycho.

Itachi was silent, mulling it over. Was it possible she was telling the truth? She may have had her back turned when the explosion notes went off, explaining the burn on her back... but she had passed out as if she were entirely depleted of energy, not as if she was in pain... '_She's probably lying again. I wonder why she doesn't want to tell us. Well, I can answer that. The same reason I'm not going to teach her personally how to do jutsus. Lack of trust. Who knows, maybe she's a spy... but I seriously doubt that. A spy would never display the amount of trust she did when I got her shirt out of her burn... nor let herself get burned so badly in the first place. Who is she really?' _

Itachi was snapped out of his thoughts by Kisame, who said, "It's getting light out. At the next village we should stock up on supplies... including two new beddings."

"I SAID I was sorry! Why won't you just leave it be? Ok, you know what? I'm going to wash dishes until I earn enough money for 2 new ones. I'll do it all day long, while you two sleep. Ok?! You watch!" I yelled, almost missing my footing again while distracted.

At the nearest random village

"How did I get myself into this?" I moaned. I absolutely HATED washing dishes, and now there were columns and columns of dishes to be done... it was going to be a long day. Resigning myself to the worst, I sighed, rolled up my sleeves, and turned on the water...

About 10:00 PM, outside the town

"Do you realize I've been up for 24 hours straight, all spent just leaping through the trees for about 8 hours then all the rest washing dishes?" I growled, my eyes dry and blood-shot. "As soon as I thought I was done, they had started serving lunch to people and brought in MORE dishes, and then they served dinner, hence bringing in EVEN MORE dishes and this has been the worst day of my life!!!" I took a breath and prepared to unleash a whole new wave of complaints, but was cut off by Itachi, who said,

"But thanks to that, you made enough money to buy some new clothes AND get two more beddings!" He smirked at me, who glared back as hard as I could. Dang it, the corners of my eyes keep twitching! Make it stop!!

"I suppose YOU'RE all nice and refreshed..." I grumbled. "And now we have to go tree-jumping again, don't we? Joy."

"We'll be going faster tonight, since this morning you slowed us down a lot with your "I don't know how to tree-jump' antics." Kisame snickered.

"Right... well, I'm feeling up for some exercise, watch me leave you two behind in the dust..." I was miraculously able to jump into the tree, and (gasp) I didn't fall off.

"Alright, I'm timing how long you can keep going." Kisame chuckled, pulling a stopwatch from somewhere in the depths of his cloak. "Ready...start!"

I jumped from tree to tree, turning off my mind to save energy like I used to do when we had to run around the track back at home. It was really simple, and it helped release the boredom and the energy-draining thoughts like, "Oh, I'm sooooo tired..." and "When can we stop?" In fact, it worked so well that I forgot what lap I was on most of the time, and always had to go check with my PE teacher. Basically, it's where you just think about nothing at all. However, when you haven't slept in 24 hours, turning off your mind can lead to something else... sleep.

As I fell off the tree, Kisame clicked the stopwatch and said, "34 minutes and twenty-five seconds. Not bad for a kid."

Itachi, of course, had already snatched me up and said, "Ok, you get to carry, since you were having so much fun timing her."

"What! No way! I already have this huge sword. YOU, on the other hand, aren't carrying anything heavy. You carry her."

"No. I have to scout for Jiraiya and Naruto-kun... and probably by now, Tsunade-hime will be with them too. Then I have to look for a cliff that they will pass by..." Itachi said softly.

"She won't die, Jiraiya will definitely save her. And I have a feeling we'll be seeing her again after we get the Kyubi child. She'll probably be after our throats." Kisame chuckled humorlessly.

Itachi was silent for a moment and then sped up to scout ahead.

The next morning

Unbeknownst to Akima, Itachi and Kisame had been going top speed through the forest, switching her to the other person's load every so often. Their top speed is pretty darn fast, so they arrived at the cliff about a day ahead of Jiraiya and company. Hence, they wait.

I awoke slowly, muscles cramped. My eyelids were glued shut, and I felt no obligation to open them just yet. Where was I? How had I fallen asleep? These questions chugged through my brain at undeterminably slow speeds. But with the sudden click of a memory of jumping through trees, I managed to tear my eyelids open.

Sunlight streamed through tall trees, a pillow couched my head. Had I fallen off the tree? Where were Kisame-san and Itachi-san? The answer was sitting on my right, just as before.

"Itachi-san?"

"Hmmmm?"

"How did I get here?"

"You fell off a tree and then slept for about 12 hours. Right now it's about... 10:30 AM. We're ahead of schedule, so relax. Naruto-kun and Jiraiya should be coming tomorrow."

"How about you teach me some stuff? Oh wait, I already have that scroll. Then, I'll be training for awhile. Call me when it's lunchtime!" I skipped off to my pillowcase, and rummaged around until I found the white scroll. Then, I jogged a little away from the camp until I found a nice open clearing. Popping open the seal, I opened it about a foot.

'_Kawarimi no jutsu? Oh, this was the one where you replace yourself with something else at high speed to take the enemy's attack. This is genin-level; should be pretty easy.' _

So, I ran through the seals a couple times until I felt I had them well memorized, then began to actually attempt it.

"Kawarimi no jutsu!"

POOF

From my vantage point in the trees, I watched as the smoke disappeared, and a rock stood where I had been. "Yay! First try!"

'_Well, that's to be expected. With her chakra levels, she can do almost any technique; it's just a matter of memorizing the seals and executing it correctly. Also...that technique is so basic I can barely remember how to do it. It won't work on enemies that are faster than you...'_ Itachi thought, watching from another tree.

'_OK, now the next one... Bunshin no jutsu? Pishaw! If Naruto could learn Kage Bunshin no jutsu, then so can I...'_ I thought, skimming ahead until I found Kage Bunshin.

It was a lot harder than the first one, but I finally got it in the end. I worked on it during and after lunchtime, completely forgetting about food. At about 2:00 PM, it had been added to my very short list of jutsus. I could only summon about 10 shadow clones, but with practice I'll get better, right? Next was... I scanned the scroll for an offensive attack. Ooooohh... how about a fire one? In fact how about Goukakyou (Grand Fireball) no jutsu? It was pretty cool...

And on it went. I learned more and more jutsus, studying and practicing them until I had nearly passed out. I only remembered my hunger when Itachi came over and waved his hand in front of my face. I looked up, startled.

"What? I'm trying to learn Suijinheki (Water Wall)!"

"You have been practicing for a long time. You have to eat something before you pass out. Food will give you more energy so you won't have as hard a time memorizing all those, too."

I scarfed down whatever Kisame and Itachi put in front of me, without noticing what it was. My eyes were still glued to the explanation of Water Wall.

"Akima!!! Wake up, kid!"

"Huh?" I looked up, bewildered.

"I SAID, WAKE UP!!"

"I'm awake! What?" Then I noticed something weird. Kisame's voice was calling me, but he was still nonchantly munching on his food.

"HELLO?!! Come on!" I suddenly felt the earth against my back.

I sat up, shaking myself, to notice Itachi and Kisame standing nearby.

"Finally! I thought you were dead!" Kisame sighed.

"Huh?"

Itachi gave a loud sigh. "This is what happens when you don't eat and train yourself too hard. We couldn't wake you up."

Slowly, things came together. "I... passed out?"

Kisame rolled his eyes and said, "I WONDER..."

I looked at myself. The scroll was still open to Water Wall in my lap, and there was dirt in my hair... Although, since I hadn't taken a shower in quite a while, that was to be expected. "I had a weird dream that we were all eating..." I mumbled.

"Let's make that dream come true. Time to eat." Itachi said, and turned away.

Not surprisingly, I was absolutely ravenous. Not eating lunch can do that to a person. Afterwards, I went straight back to training. Water Wall was soon added to my list of techniques. Checking the time, I decided that I could learn one more jutsu before I absolutely had to go to sleep from exhaustion. _'What should it be?'_ I wondered, rolling the scroll out almost all the way. _'My God, all the jutsus in the world have got to be in this thing... why can't they make it into a book? Then at least I wouldn't have to roll it all back up...'_

Closing my eyes, I pointed at a random part of the scroll, then read what it was. _'Well, what do you know? This one was in the anime too. Must be fate.'_

I stood up and formed each of the seals slowly and carefully. "Katon, Karyuu Endan! (Fire Element, Fire Dragon Flame Missile)".

I took a deep breath and blew as hard as I could, but only managed a one little fizzle of fire. It reminded me of Mushu from Mulan when he tried to blow fire... like 'Psst...shhh....' Does that make any sense at all? Oh well.

Completely exhausted, I fell onto the ground spread-eagled and stared up at the stars. _'A lot brighter than at home... well, that's because there were always so many city lights on. Here it's out in the wilderness...' _I was about to close my eyes, when I felt an unfamiliar presence. It was weird how I just got a chilling feeling of being watched... And for once in my life, I was right. My eyes were half-closed, but I could see the shadowy figure hop out of a tree and approach cautiously...who was it?

"Itachi...?" I mumbled, my eyelids becoming much too heavy to keep open. But when the figure came closer, I did not recognize his face.

'_I know the anime back to front... HE definitely was not in it.' _I thought, as I drifted off into unconsciousness.

3rd POV

The figure moved closer. The girl appeared to be unconscious, probably of exhaustion from training all day. _'That last jutsu...if she had successfully pulled it off, there would be no way I could possibly kidnap her. But it looks like luck is on my side tonight. Akatsuki will be disappointed tonight...'_

He scooped her up and slung her over his shoulder, then made off into the night as quietly as he had come. His partner silently followed, disengaging herself from a nearby bush, and smoothly blowing out the tracks behind them. Their stealth and secrecy went by unnoticed... Even by the first prodigy of the Uchiha clan.

In the morning

Itachi awoke slowly. His first thought was about how achy he was, which wasn't surprising, since he had fallen asleep in a tree. _'What happened again? I was watching Akima train... ughh, I guess I better go wake her up. She probably fell asleep in the middle of the field, and Naruto-kun should be coming soon...'_ With that, Itachi sat up and cracked his neck on each side, then his shoulders, stretched and jumped out of the tree onto stiff legs. He rubbed his eyes and yawned, then looked for Akima.

'_Not here... maybe she had the sense to go to bed... unlike me...'_

Itachi was about to leave for the campsite, when he noticed Akima's scroll spread out all over the ground.

'_I'll have to ask her not to leave that lying around. It was quite expensive...in lives.'_

Itachi made his way leisurely to the campsite, and found Kisame roasting something over a fire.

"I suppose Akima fell asleep while training? She didn't come back last night." Kisame said nonchantly.

Itachi glanced over at Akima's bedding and found it to be still in its neat little pack, next to her pillowcase.

"She wasn't there."

"What? Where is she?"

"I don't know. I'm going back to look for tracks... Maybe she just got lost."

"I'll look around here." Kisame said, abruptly getting up and speeding off.

Itachi ran back to the Akima's training spot, and couldn't find a single footprint. Not one. Kisame couldn't find anything either.

"This is bad, Jiraiya should be coming along soon...Do you think she could have figured it out?" Kisame said

Itachi was deep in thought, and ignored him. _'I feel like I'm missing something. Something important. Something staring me in the face. What is it? I just can't think...time's running out.'_

As if on cue, Jiraiya, Tsunade, Shizune, and Naruto himself came a-walking down the trail, and Itachi and Kisame dispersed all traces of themselves and their belongings at approximately the speed of light.

"Oi oi! Old hag!! When we get back to Konoha, will you treat me to Ichiraku ramen??"

"For the hundredth time, ONLY IF YOU PAY!!!!"

"But I said 'treat' me to ramen..."

"Hey, Naruto, that's no way to treat a Hokage."

"She's a broke Hokage!"

"Well..."

"Shut up, brat!"

The talkative group passed by Itachi and Kisame's hiding places without even sparing them a glance. Itachi held his breath until they disappeared from sight.

'_That was close...damn it! There goes my chance to kidnap the Kyubi... but with two extra people there, I don't think we could have pulled it off anyway.'_

Itachi sighed and returned to his original assignment: find Akima. The plan could still work; there were other cliffs about. He sped off towards the training grounds and scanned the trackless dirt over and over. Then it hit him.

_There aren't any tracks at all. The ground isn't even scuffed up. It's entirely flat... This is the work of a high level ninja...they probably use some kind of jutsu to wipe the floor after them, so all we have to do is look where there AREN'T any clues. Animal tracks, basically all markings on the ground, just search for where they aren't...'_

Itachi walked around until he found a path clear of tracks, and then called Kisame. While waiting for him, he rolled up the very, very long scroll and put it in Akima's pack. As soon as he arrived, Itachi explained to him his inspiration and they both set off, mere shadows in the forest.

Many hours later

"Someone must have kidnapped her." Itachi said, darting through the trees.

"I agree, but for what purpose? Is it because of us? Are we being lured into a trap?" Kisame questioned.

"I don't know... but the sweeping of tracks is superb, too superb. Someone of a high level must have done it. My guess is it was DarkMoon..."

"The rival criminal group to Akatsuki... but why kidnap Akima? She isn't even part of the group, and she's not a threat..." Kisame said.

"The demon child..." Itachi said quietly, realization hitting him.

"What? What does Naruto have to do with it?" Kisame asked, confused.

"They must think that she's the demon child... It makes sense. A child traveling with us, members of the Akatsuki. They probably had a spy figure out what our plans were, and then stole her from under our noses... We were careless."

Kisame was silent, knowing it was true. The DarkMoon were always trying to foil Akatsuki's plans so that they could become the most famous and feared of the criminal gangs. They had their share of S-rank criminals as well, but instead of focusing on fighting skills as the main requirement, they were based on stealth, tracking, speed, stamina, and stealing. They had their assassins for the hard jobs, but Akatsuki was still more prominent in that area. If DarkMoon succeeded in kidnapping Akima from Itachi, the Uchiha genius, Akatsuki's credibility would take a big hit, even if DarkMoon got the wrong person. Their dignity was at stake, so to say.

Inside the Hokage Tower in Konoha Village, 2 days later

Tsunade was currently flooded in paperwork, and had already healed Kakashi and Sasuke from Itachi's Mangekyou Sharingan with no problems or side effects. She had also healed Lee, and he and Gai were now bothering her with their life-long promises and weird sayings, each flashing sparkly smiles after every sentence.

"I am indebted to you for my entire life! Please accept my invitation to the pool party this coming weekend!"

"No, that's ok, I have enough paperwork to do for the rest of my life, and I can't take any time off right now..."

"Hokage-sama! Please take these incredibly rare green roses as a sign of my appreciation of your great deed! I am also indebted to you for life, and will come to your aid in any situation!"

"Well, that's great, could you do me a favor right now?"

"Yes! This pitiful excuse of a human will shine your shoes if need be!"

"GET OUT!!! I'M WORKING!!!"

"Immediately, Hokage-sama! But remember, if ever you should need my assistance, in anything at all, you only have to call and I will arrive in a green lightning bolt of magnificence!"

"...ditto..." Lee said, for once at a loss for words.

Tsunade slammed the door and sat back down, massaging her temples. "Why did I ever agree to this? I want some sake..."

Outside Konoha Village

"I have pinpointed the target." Naruto whispered into his headphone, pressing his back up to a tree.

"In ready position three" Sakura whispered likewise, crouching behind a (shrill ringing sound) shrubbery!! (If you don't get that, ask someone else who watches dumb movies to explain it to you.)

"Ready here..." Sasuke whispered, also concealed in a (gasp) shrubbery!

"Ok... on three, everyone jump for the target and hem him in." Kakashi whispered into his mike, one hand covering an ear. "One, two, three!"

Team 7 leaped out of their hiding places and pounced for the cat... but Naruto accidentally bonked heads with Sasuke, making them both fall to the ground, clutching their respective foreheads. Sakura shrieked her favorite line, as usual..." Sasuke-kun! Are you alright? Naruto, you baka!" With everyone's confusion, the cat managed to slip away unnoticed.

"But Sakura-chan! Sasuke was way too far back!" Naruto said, predictably laying the blame on Sasuke. After all, Naruto never made mistakes; it was always Sasuke's fault.

"...baka." Sasuke said, a big bump forming on his forehead. He rubbed it gingerly.

Naruto turned red and shouted ear splittingly, "Sasuke you bastard! Don't call me an idiot! It was your entire fault anyways!"

Sakura looked like she might have rabies because she was frothing at the mouth, and her eyes turned red. "WHAT DID YOU CALL SASUKE YOU STUPID BAKA!!!" she screamed, steam pouring out of her ears in thick clouds.

But, before Sakura could reduce a poor shuddering Naruto into little pieces of flesh, Kakashi materialized out of nowhere in a poof of smoke with his usual "Yo" Naruto quickly hid behind him, peeking out at a flaming Sakura. Sasuke just stood with his hands in his pockets, eyes closed.

"Now, now, guys, accidents happen. This is what happens when your teamwork isn't good enough. Teamwork is everything! After we complete this mission, I'll have an extra exercise just for improving teamwork." Kakashi said, with his hands in his pockets, lazily eyeing his team.

"Ha! Sasuke, I'll beat your ass in the teamwork exercise later!" Naruto yelled.

There was a silence, in which everyone except Naruto clapped their hands to their faces in dismay.

"Well, anyways, let's go find the cat again..." Kakashi sighed.

It took several hours and many miles until they successfully caught the cat, mostly because of screw-ups in one way or another involving Naruto and Sasuke, and once because Sakura saw a spider on her leg and started screaming while going into a panic attack, waving the leg around everywhere until she was absolutely sure it was gone. Anyways, their sensei decided to give them a 'teamwork talk' while tree-jumping back to Konoha, the cat in Naruto's arms because he was the only one that had sleeves: a minor protection against the resisting cat's clawing. Well, Kakashi had sleeves too, but he didn't want to hold it.

"So, you guys, teamwork is all about trust. You have to know your allies, and predict how they will act. Today's first few failures were caused by Sasuke and Naruto's lack of teamwork...and Sakura's arachnophobia. So, when we get back to Konoha, we're going to do the bell training again. This time, I expect..." Kakashi suddenly halted, and sniffed the air. Turning into the wind, his back facing them, he said, "Wait here." And then he disappeared.

"What was that about?" Sakura asked to no one in particular.

"I don't know, but he'd better hurry up, I don't think I have the patience to deal with this cat any longer!" Naruto said, struggling with the wriggling cat.

Sasuke said nothing... he was a lot like his brother in that way... quiet...

With Kakashi

His lecturing about teamwork had been abruptly paused by the sudden scent of blood... He knew that scent by heart, and here the forest was tainted with it. As he leaped through the trees, he suddenly came into a clearing of smashed trees and torn-up ground... definitely the scene of a struggle. There were puddles of blood on the ground and smeared splotches all over the trashed tree trunks... all in all, a battlefield. His students should not see this, but... someone could be in danger. There were no bodies, so either someone had been kidnapped or disposed of... entirely. He could not put someone's life on the line... they could need help. But a ninja always puts the mission first...

He made a quick decision. Jumping back to his team, he went straight to the point.

"Naruto, let the cat go. I will put a chakra monitor on it so that we can find it again if need be. Someone's life may be in danger and we shouldn't waste any time. Come with me, now!"

Naruto, for once in his life, obeyed directions. His sensei was serious, and that wasn't a common experience for the team. Sakura was about to protest, but Kakashi silenced her unformed dialogue with a wave of his hand. Sasuke felt like he was ready for anything...

'_Finally, a real mission! The more I train, the closer I get to Itachi...' _he thought, clenching his jaw in remembrance of his last meeting with his dear oniisan. It had not ended well.

And so, the hard-won cat was freed, and Team 7 embarked on their 3rd A-class mission ever.

Author's Notes:

Ya, not really anything to say... at least the plot is grinding along... oh wait, there's something to say. Who ARE these masked people who kidnapped our favorite anime nerd (that'd be akima)??? Where are Naruto and company going? Who spilt whose blood? Find out next time on... Whatever this fanfic is called!! (Yes, when I wrote this chapter I hadn't named it yet. See, I was up to chapter 7 before I even made an account and all, so... ya.)

Wait people, wait! Does anyone know how to make this thing not delete anime smileys? and furthermore, how to make it not delete underlines and stars? Would be helpful. Brownies for whoever helps me out!


	4. Darkmoon

Author's Note: Read me! This is just the list of jutsus that Akima was able to learn... just so you know. And also so that you can know what they mean. Some of them I don't know what their exact English name is...so... yeah. Deal with it. By the way, all of them are completely random, except for Kage Bunshin... meaning I just selected some episodes and fast-forwarded until someone did a justu.

Kawarimi- this is the switching technique where you put something in your place to take an enemy's attack

Kage Bunshin (Shadow Replication)- creates multiple real bodies that can do damage and will disappear when hit strongly enough

Suijinheki (Water Wall)- creates a wall of water. Duh.

Goukakyuu (Blazing Fireball)- this creates (gasp) a big blazing fireball.

Shinjuuzanshu- pulls an enemy underground so that only their head is above it

Karyuu Endan (Fire Dragon Flame Missile)- a big fireball. Oh, the originality. This one is supposed to be a lot bigger than the other one. It's also only partially learned, depending

on how you look at it, considering Akima hasn't successfully completed it yet.

Review Responses:

Lady Eden Your Gift from Death- Yay! It makes me happy when people review and says my story is good. I'm sorry about your dog. I hope he/she feels better. Do your best to update on your story!

purple-otter- Yay, another compliment. Am I really the first??? Ok, I doubt it. But thanks anyways. Oog, Akima seems a bit Mary-Sue to me... be sure to point out things that need to be changed and whatnot. Boo on Mary-Sues!! Ahh, grenades?? Labtops?? How would poor Akima explain those? But you're right, it would make it cool.

SHiZuNe-ChaN- Yikes!! I updated I updated!! Thanks for reviewing!

Dragon Man 180- Whee for the kitty cat!! Hm... as for whether Akima will be saved by Team 7... read and find out!

Brelle- Hmm, you reviewed my first chapter... did u read the rest? Read this one and review!! "Your story rocks!" w00t. I feel happy.

TehRadicalEdward- Hee, Sakura-bashing (kind of) in this chapter. W00t! Itachi, careless?? Well, yeah... I dunno, I couldn't let Akima die, now could I? C ya at school! (Bleh. I procastinate on hw a lot. Boo on AP Hist!)

DarkMoon

I felt quite sick when I awoke, groggily peeking open my sticky eyelids. The sunlight streamed through the treetops right into my eyes, causing me to quickly snap them shut. _'Why am I so tired?' _I thought, turning over onto my side. _'I was training... must have fallen asleep.' _

"Hey, brat. Wake up." An unfamiliar female voice said sharply.

"Wha?" I grumbled and sat up, keeping my half-adjusted eyes partly closed.

"Drink this. Come on, hurry up and take it. We don't have all day." She, whoever it was, said, and a bowl of funny-smelling liquid came into vision.

I sat up and took it, but didn't drink it. Instead I turned to the speaker. She wore a brown and green camouflage outfit. It reminded me of the soldiers in the war movies back home. Her pants stretched half-way down her shins and ended in those white bandages that I recalled Kakashi wore. Her shirt went similarly half-way down her forearm and also had bandages, though these were a forest green-ish color. Her hair was black and pulled back into a ponytail that fell about a foot down her back. Coal-black eyes regarded me with caution from underneath slightly curved eyelashes.

"Hurry up and drink." She said coldly.

I sniffed the concoction suspiciously. The very smell made me feel nauseous, and my head reeled. My poor sensitive nose couldn't take it, and "AH-CHOO!" I sneezed.

The scary lady glared, for I had just sneezed right into the bowl... and it was now contaminated.

"Uhh...sorry..." I sniffled and snorted. My eyes were teary. Apparently I was allergic to something in there...

"Drink it anyways." She said, calmly.

"I think I'm allergic to it-" I managed to get out before I sneezed loudly again, remembering to turn my head to the side this time.

"Listen, brat. Demons don't HAVE allergies. Stop faking and drink up, before I force you." She snarled, eyes flashing.

I stared at her wide-eyed, as if noticing her fully for the first time. Then...

"I'm not a demon!"

She said nothing, threateningly reaching for her kunai holster. I didn't say anything either. Why did she think I was a demon? Oh... she probably meant Naruto. Traveling with Itachi and Kisame...yes, it made sense. They had thought I was Naruto and kidnapped me, probably to ransom me or something from the Akatsuki. Though, that didn't seem quite right. Akatsuki didn't pay ransoms... if they wanted something, they would get one of their members to do it. And where were Itachi and Kisame for that matter? And where am I, and how did I get here?

But what mattered right now was the fact that she was ever-so-slowly pulling out the ninja knife. What could I do? Then I felt a sneeze coming on again... Perfect timing. I could use my handicap to my advantage (eh, oxymoron? Kind of.)

"AH-CHOO!" I made sure to sneeze right into her face.

"Eeeww!" The reaction was immediate; her hand automatically forgot about the kunai and reached up to wipe my spit off her face. Before she had time to recover, I splashed the liquid in the bowl in the general direction of her eyes and then drew back and threw it like a Frisbee at her head.

(KLONK)

I had good aim, and she fell down unconscious. Taking my chance, I ran for it.

But before I had gotten 10 feet, the man I recognized from last night materialized in front of me. I skidded to a halt and sharply changed directions to the right, but he still managed to stay to the outside of me, forcing me to curve slowly back to where I had started... I faked a left turn and he slowed down, ready to catch me, but I quickened my sprint and was barely able to skirt him.

I ran as fast as I could, but he said something I couldn't quite hear and suddenly my legs were bound by the earth. I struggled violently, cursing, but I couldn't budge an inch. I was caught.

With Kakashi and co.

Naruto had gotten over the seriousness of his sensei and now was annoying everyone with his unstoppable questions.

"Hey, hey, Kakashi-sensei!! How much longer do you think it will take for us to catch and beat the crap out of the bad guys?"

"I don't know." Kakashi answered, having blanked out Naruto's questions for the past mile or so when they had become unbearable.

"Can we at least get an estimate?" Sasuke said, causing Kakashi to actually pay attention. After all, Sasuke was Kakashi's favorite student. "It would be beneficial to know the distance so that we may prepare for ambushes."

"The blood had not yet dried, they shouldn't be too far ahead. Maybe a few miles, depending on how fast they're moving." Kakashi answered.

Naruto glowered. _'Stupid Sasuke. Stupid Kakashi-sensei. He always favors Sasuke! Why does he answer Sasuke and not me?' _Naruto wanted to throw a temper tantrum, so he did.

"Sasuke, you baka!"

"What? You total idiot, what did I do now?" Sasuke answered teasingly. Ohhhhh, he knew why Naruto was mad alright. It just goes to show who was better.

"You complete a-" Naruto started but was cut off sharply by Sakura, who screamed as a kunai thudded into her leg.

Back with Akima...

"Well, now, where did you think you were going, missie?" the strange man asked me, as I continued to struggle fruitlessly against the earth that bound my legs. He looked a little like the 1st Hokage, except his hair was short and spiky and his eyes were full of malice. He wore a maroon long sleeve shirt with a green vest and black pants that ended in white bandages. I was about to do something vulgar like stick my finger at him or spit on his face, but a far-off scream caught my attention.

"Ahh, it appears that my trap has provided results. If you were expecting to be rescued, note that scream carefully..."

I knew that neither Itachi nor Kisame screamed like a girl, so it wasn't them. Actually, I doubted that they would even be coming after me... I slumped slightly at that thought, and the scary man took that as his victory.

"Now then, where has my idiot of a partner gotten to?" He turned around and scanned the forest, then began to walk off.

I grabbed my chance. Quickly forming some seals, I slammed my hands into the ground on my legs and said, "Doton, Shinjuuzanshu no jutsu!"

He whipped around, but fell into the hole that suddenly appeared underneath him. The earth quickly caved in, and he was stuck.

I let out a sigh. Now we were both stuck, and the other lady was knocked out. "Looks like a draw." I said, glaring at his smirking face. Wait, smirking?

(POOF) He disappeared. My jaw dropped. Bunshin no jutsu? Must be... then where was he?

"That was rather naughty." A voice hissed into my ear, and I felt cold metal on my neck. I didn't dare to move, but closed my jaw hurriedly.

"Now then, you will follow my orders without question. Understood?" The kunai moved away a little so that I could speak without cutting myself.

"...yes."

"Good. Put your hands behind your back." I did as I was told, mentally scolding myself for being so easily tricked by such a low class jutsu. Or had it been Kage Bunshin?

My hands were tightly bound, and only then did the earth crumble around my feet, releasing me.

"Walk straight forward. Any attempts to escape..." A dramatic pause. "Will be dealt with severely..." A couldn't help but give a small shudder. Believe it or not, I would give almost anything to be with the two friendlier S-class criminals right now.

He marched me back to the campsite, where the lady I had hit with the bowl was just gaining consciousness.

"Defeated by a kid, huh?" he snickered. She glared up at him, then gave an even more furious glare at me. "How did it happen?" he asked, not concealing his amusement.

She blushed and said indignantly, "That demon kid sneezed on me! You would get distracted too!"

"Not to the point that I wouldn't notice a bowl flying at my face." He remarked, eyeing the cracked bowl lying upside down on the ground.

She grumbled something indecipherable and then stood up. "So, what about our pursuers?" she asked, avoiding eye contact.

"I took care of them... We can rest here today, and get a few answers." He glanced over at me, who was standing obediently on his right side. I wanted to glare, but I was too curious as to what he was talking about.

Back with Kakashi and co...

Sakura fell from the tree, which was both good and bad. It was good because the whole new set of kunais buried into the tree branch where she had been a second before, bad because she was going to hit the ground and die. But, Kakashi moved with lightning speed and caught her, then yelled, "Everyone, down here!"

Sasuke dived down as something exploded right behind him, and Naruto did likewise.

More explosions sounded as the traps went off. When Sasuke and Naruto got to the ground, Kakashi shoved Sakura, who was currently bleeding badly and hyperventilating into Naruto's arms and shouted, "Bind her wound and stay here, I'm going to disable the traps!" and then leaped back into the currently burning tree branches.

"Sakura-chan! Hold on!" Naruto shouted as he laid her gently on the ground. "Sasuke, get the bandages!"

Sasuke opened his pack and pulled out the roll, and said, "Hold her leg, Naruto. I'll try to bind that wound."

Sasuke pulled out the kunai carefully, then wrapped the bandage tightly around the cut. Sakura shrieked in pain and then passed out.

"Sakura-chan..." Naruto whimpered. Her bandages were already turning red.

Sasuke said nothing. She had ever been hurt this badly before.

Kakashi flipped out of a tree and said hurriedly, "Everyone ok?"

"Sakura has passed out. I believe that when she recovers, she will not be able to walk for awhile. We should take her to the hospital." Sasuke said. Kakashi nodded.

"The nearest hospital is only a mile that way in the Hidden Wave. That's the way we were going anyway. Now, I'll carry Sakura, let's hurry." Kakashi scooped up the unconscious Sakura and darted off. Naruto and Sasuke followed wordlessly.

In Hidden Wave Hospital.

Sakura was lying in bed, sleeping peacefully. The doctors had convinced a worried Team 7 that she would be just fine after a week or two. However, Kakashi knew that they didn't have a week or two to spare, and that their foe was probably getting farther and farther away each minute. But, he couldn't just leave Sakura here, alone...

The answer was right outside the hospital.

"Naruto!!"

Naruto perked up from his slouching position and instantly recognized the child running up to him. "Inari! How have you been?"

"Great! But... why were you in the hospital?" Inari asked, suddenly concerned.

"Ohhh," Naruto's good mood disappeared. "Sakura-chan is hurt..."

"Oh my!" Tsunami, Inari's mother walked up. "Did I just hear you say your friend is hurt?"

"Yeah... we have to go in with the mission, but we can't leave her here by herself..." Naruto said.

"Don't say another word! We will take care of her!" Tsunami instantly said, clenching a fist.

"R-really? That would make everything-" Naruto started, but Inari cut in and said,

"Naruto! She said not to say another word! We're going to go in right now!"

and with that, Tsunami and Inari rushed off.

Tsunami poked her head out of the door and yelled, "Don't even think about following us! You have a mission to do!" and the door slammed.

"Well, that's settled. I guess I'd better send a letter back to Konoha to tell them to pick up Sakura..." Kakashi began, but two more familiar people showed up.

"Naruto!" It was Lee and Neji.

"Fuzzy Eyebrows! Neji! What are you doing here? And where's Tenten?" Naruto asked.

"Tenten's sick, and we're...picking up groceries..." Neji sighed. He glared at Naruto. "Because of YOU, I still have to do D-class missions."

Naruto was about to respond with a witty retort when a sudden idea struck him. "Want to go on an A-class mission with us?"

Kakashi immediately stepped in. "No, they do not. Gai would kill me, and plus, it's too dangerous."

But Neji had already made up his mind to go, and Lee's eyes flamed at the word 'dangerous'.

So, Kakashi eventually gave in to their requests and sent off a letter to Gai explaining where his students were and giving instructions to pick up Sakura. All the while, he was muttering under his breath, "Gai will kill me, Gai will kill me..."

With Akima

The man that looked like the First had gone off somewhere again, saying that he 'had to get supplies'. I sat quietly against a tree, while the scary lady cooked up another nauseating mixture. I was given this opportunity to see what went into the potion, and it made me very glad I hadn't drunk the first one. She put in a lot of funny looking plants, a few weeds, and I swear she put in some kind of bug, though she tried to hide it from me. I didn't recognize a single one of the plants... but they looked and smelled poisonous. Then, to top it all off, she took out a little vial and dumped a white powder into the soup, then mashed all of it together with a mortar and pestle.

'_Absolutely no way in hell they're going to get me to drink that.' _I thought, shaking my head slightly.

"Ok, demon, eat it." She held the bowl up near my mouth and waited for me to open up. After all, I can't eat with my hands tied behind my back. Understandably, I kept my mouth zipped shut.

"Fine then, resist and see what happens." She held the bowl with her right hand and pinched my nose shut.

I hadn't been expecting that, and hadn't had a very good breath. Immediately, it seemed, I needed a breath of air. But, as soon as I opened my mouth, I knew that slime was going in it. So, this was a problem easily solved once you think about it. I opened just the corner of mouth and breathed that way.

Glaring, she let go of my nose and grabbed my chin, fiercely wrenching down. I hadn't been clenching since I had been breathing through that opening, and my jaw easily opened. But just because something goes into my mouth doesn't mean it wasn't going right back out.

(SPLTH) (I'm sorry, I can't think of a good spitting sound)

For the second time that day, she was drenched in my spit. This did not go down too well.

"I'll kill you, you f-ing brat!" She took out a kunai and slammed it into the tree where my head had been a split second ago. Luckily, I had rolled to the side, and, sitting in a cross-legged position, I rolled back a little and jumped up. Of course, Scary Lady came after me with little shurikens, which she threw swiftly at me. I ducked and almost lost my balance. _'Shit, I need to cut these ropes somehow.'_ I thought, zigzagging back and forth. It was a little like dodgeball, really, except 'out' equals 'extreme pain and probably death'.

Scary Lady had run out of shurikens, and started doing some kind of jutsu. I took my chance to back up to a tree with a shuriken stuck in it, and started feverishly sawing at the ropes.

"Ninpou, Earth Claws Technique (Yeah... I made this up... and I know it sounds stupid. Shut up.) Four claws ripped out of the ground and sped towards me.

'_Hurry up, hurry up!' _The rope was almost done, just a few more seconds... I heard a snap, and stepped quickly to the side. The earth claws smacked into the trunk of the poor tree and reduced it into splinters. Then they fell onto the ground, returning into harmless clods of dirt.

Seizing my chance while she was vulnerable, I grabbed a kunai from the bark of a tree next to me and sent it flying towards her, then formed seals as quickly as I could. She dodged it easily, despite her exhaustion, and charged straight forward at me, and slammed her fist into my face. I fell backwards, nose bleeding profusely.

"See, brat, you shouldn't have messed with me." She chuckled evilly.

"I grinned up at her, blood dribbling from the edges of my mouth, and said one word.

"Stupid."

She gaped as my body poofed into a piece of tree trunk. "Kawarimi?"

I jumped at her from behind, followed by four other me's. "Not only that, but..."

She gave another chuckle. "You think you can defeat me with Bunshins? Don't make me laugh. I can tell which is real if I look closely."

I simply gave a group, "Ha!" and continued rushing forward.

'_I...I can't tell which one! Is this really Bunshin no jutsu?" _she thought, horrified. Then she spotted that only one of the me's had a kunai. _'Must be that one... gotcha!'_

I couldn't help but laugh as she charged at my clone. _' I don't believe this... it's too easy! Is she really a ninja?' _I thought as I snatched up another kunai.

"You're mine!" she screamed in fury, stabbing my clone ferociously.

"Close!" I called, as the shadow clone disappeared in a puff of smoke. Then I slammed my kunai right in between her wide eyes, as hard as I could. Blood poured out in rivers, and she fell.

"I...I didn't mean to do that..."

"No... it's not real...c'mon, she used Kawarimi! Disappear!"

She didn't disappear. She was dead. Culprit... gosh, I wonder...

I stared down at my blood-speckled hands. Just like in the movies. Except it was real.

I would have screamed, but my throat had caught and refused to budge. I had killed someone. Not an innocent, for sure. It was in self-defense. Right? Right? She was trying to kill me right?

No. She had not been trying to kill me. After all, they had kidnapped me, emphasis on kidnap. Not kill. They thought I was Naruto, and were somehow going to ransom me or something. Therefore, no matter how angry she got, she still wouldn't have REALLY killed me. Because then her teammate would probably kill her.

Oh my God... I killed someone...

I wasn't panicking... there was no need. She was dead and that was that. She seemed to be evil enough to deserve it...right? But now, I think I'd better move it... who knows when the other guy will show up?

I took all her weaponry and scrolls, examining each as I found them. There were kunais, small shurikens, a shadow shuriken, and a scroll each for teleportation, healing, and stealing. I also took her wallet, and discovered that she had quite a bit in there. As I searched for anything else useful, I desperately tried to avoid the thought that I was stealing from a dead person.

I stood up, and sadly noticed that my faithful pillowcase was missing. _'I hope Itachi keeps it around. Hopefully I'll meet up with him again someday, and then I can get my stuff back.' _I thought. _'Ha, as if that'll ever happen. Itachi isn't going to carry around my extra weight.'_

Meanwhile, somewhere out there...

Itachi struggled with the urge to just drop Akima's stuff and then apologize to her later. _'What is IN this thing? Weights?' _he thought, as his blood-red eyes frantically searched for tracks. He had been tracking 'non-tracks' for about a mile, and now the tracks had returned again. It was quite annoying. Spying a footprint, he jumped forwards, quickly followed by Kisame.

'_Kisame really needs to learn how to track... I'm sick of this... all he knows is how to rip up the other person.'_

Heaving a sigh, Itachi continued on, drawing closer and closer...

Back with Akima, in a tree 3rd POV

The rain had started at first with a light drizzle, but now it was pouring down fitfully. Akima had been tree-jumping back the way she had come for an hour now, and although tired, she was freezing her butt off. After all, she was only wearing a shirt and shorts.

Her breath came out in little puffs of steam as she shuddered violently, huddled against a trunk. It really only provided a minimum amount of cover from the pouring rain, and she was soaked to the bone. Her fingers were stiff, and her nose had clogged up.

'_I caught a cold for sure...' _she thought, sniffing miserably. The ground around her was slowly turning into mud, but she was already soaked, so why not get a little dirty too?

'_Right now I'd give all my money for a cup of hot chocolate...'_

She closed her eyes and tried to prevent her teeth from chattering, as her stomach gave a little squirm. _'So hungry...Strange how people take stuff for granted... like food, a home, a warm bed...'_

She started crying, feeling sorry for herself, and the hot tears only helped slightly to warm up her frozen cheeks. And then...

"Hey! Whatcha doing?"

1st POV

"Eh?" I blearily stared up at the blond-haired blue-eyed boy in front of me... he looked really familiar...

"Oi! Kakashi-sensei! I found somebody!"

'_Kakashi-sensei? (gasp) That's Naruto!!'_

A gray-haired man dropped into view, startling me. "Yo!"

I stared at him... then... "AH-CHOO!"

I had remembered to turn my head in the nick of time. I probably wouldn't make a good impression to sneeze in someone's face when I met them.

He jumped back a little when I had sneezed. Naruto and I stared, then shrugged. Rather, he shrugged. I sniffed and then said, "Hello... Who are you?"

"Me me! My name is Uzumaki Naruto! I like ramen! My hobbies are eating ramen and beating up Sasuke and training to become stronger! And, and, someday, I'm going to be the Hokage!" Naruto shouted exuberantly, rain pouring down his face.

"She didn't ask for your life story, dobe." A boy with black hair about the same age as Naruto stepped forward, followed shortly by a fuzzy-eyebrowed boy wearing a full green suit.

"Sasuke! Why do you have to be such a bastard all the time! I wasn't annoying you was I? See? She's shaking her head! Proved you wrong!" Naruto stuck his tongue out at Sasuke.

I couldn't help but give a small smile as I watched Naruto continue with more insults while Sasuke just ignored him. Instead, he turned to Kakashi. "Where's Neji?" he asked.

"Here." Neji somersaulted right down in front of me, then looked me straight in the eye. "I believe we should get you out of the rain soon... your name?"

There was an expectant pause, and I hesitantly said, "...Akima."

"Neji's right. I think you caught a cold, Akima-san." Lee said. I nodded and slowly unclenched my stiff arms and legs from their positions and stood up awkwardly, cracking my joints.

"Ok, everyone follow me..." Kakashi said, leaping off into the air.

I followed clumsily. My frozen legs were numb, and I couldn't feel my toes at all. I focused intensely on the back of the jounin teacher ahead of me. I didn't want to go through the embarrassment of falling off or getting lost. I stumbled a couple times, but managed to keep my balance. Behind me, I could feel someone's eyes boring into my back, though whether it was Sasuke or Neji I couldn't tell. I doubted Lee or Naruto were capable of the intense stare I was receiving.

After only about ten minutes, we reached a cave, and I hurried inside, shivering so hard my knees knocked together. Then... the coughing started.

Kakashi stared at me worriedly as I collapsed into a coughing fit. "Are you okay?" he said.

I nodded, hands over my mouth. I kept my eyes closed, and sat down and drew myself over to the wall, trying unsuccessfully to muffle the hacking coughs. My throat felt like it was on fire.

Naruto stared worriedly, and then said, "We should make a fire."

"With what, moron?" Sasuke said exasperateley. "There's no dry wood around here."

For once, Naruto didn't answer, mostly because Kakashi spoke up. "Well, looks like one of us will forfeit a bedding tonight. Guess we'll have to play janken (rock, paper, scissors).

I stood up and said hurriedly, "No, that's not (snufflecough) necces-(cough) necessary. I'm fine."

Neji made a 'humph'-like sound and said, "If you were to sleep like that, you'd probably die. Furthermore, being the only girl, we are obligated to give you the best."

I would have yelled at him had I not been so cold. Instead I settled with glaring, but he pretended (I think) not to notice.

"I'm absolutely fine! It's my own fault for not planning ahead and all, and just because I'm a girl you guys think you can treat-" Neji pinched the pressure point on the back of my neck, and I fell, unconscious, to the ground.

3rd POV

Sasuke stared. "I really don't think that was necessary. When will she wake up?"

"Who knows?" Neji said. "Probably tomorrow morning. And, besides it's a lot easier this way. Now, let's hurry up and play janken."

Kakashi ended up losing, so he tucked in Akima, chuckling. "I should have volunteered. After all, I'm the oldest, and have to take care of you all."

Naruto set up his bedding and lay down, almost immediately beginning to snore and drool profusely.

The rest of them slept in a quieter manner, and Kakashi simply sat with his back against the cave wall, napping with his senses alert, as all jounins knew how to do. _'I have a lot of questions to ask Akima... especially concerning that dead woman we found in the forest a little while back. Could it be...? No, the young lady here does not look capable of that kind of merciless bloodshed... but there's still no harm in asking...Or is there?' _Kakashi thought, before closing his eyes.

Author's Notes:

And another chappie done... more action will come soon, I promise. Did my first fight scene come out ok? Reviews pleez!!


	5. Seal

Dragon Man 180- The male Darkmoon ninja will show up sooner or later... he'll just have to wait. Omg, if he was in the checkout line in front of Gai buying groceries, that would be hilarious!!! But, sorry, you can imagine it that way, but Akima forgot all about that guy, so it'll be a big surprise or whatever when he comes back...

Lady Eden Your Gift from Death- Updated!! Layna, kill somebody? Hmm, looking forward to that... (evil laughter) Yay! Someone liked my first fight scene!! Much more to come...

TehRadicalEdward- Well, you know... I didn't want the Sakura-lovers to hate me too much... and she's not going to appear again, so just think of her as dead. Itachi and Gaara are mine!! (well, maybe just Itachi...)

le otter-chan- (cries) Akima... noooo... Mary-Sue??? But but but... she's normal-looking, not pretty, and I just had to have her learn some jutsus so that she could start fighting.. In a later chapter should I have her beaten to a bloody pulp? That would be fun. I WILL give her some flaws. And she makes plenty of mistakes... she lets a lot slip out. Ahhh, by the end of this chapter, you will be mad at me, I'm sure of it... ::

Seal

In the cave, with Kakashi and co.

I awoke with a start, intending to yell at Neji. What for? I couldn't remember. Oh well, forget that. Instead I looked around at my surroundings. There were four other empty beddings around mine, and sunlight streamed through the mouth of the cave. The scent of something cooking reached my nose and my stomach squiggled in anticipation. Wobbling dangerously, I walked on jelly-legs into the light. Kakashi, Sasuke, Naruto, Neji, and Lee sat in a circle, munching on various things. Naruto had ramen, of course.

"Look whose up." Neji said, without looking at me.

"Are you hungry? When was the last time you ate?" Kakashi asked. "We didn't fix you anything yet because we didn't know what you wanted. As you can see, we all prefer different things."

I tried to remember when I had last eaten. Not yesterday, though I had been offered that vile mysterious liquid, and the day before that... hadn't I had dinner? I ate something that day for sure, though... Whoa, I hadn't eaten in a long time! Why wasn't I hungrier?

"I think that was the day before yesterday..."

There was a stunned silence, then... "Ehhhhh?! Quick, Sasuke, get some emergency ramen!" Naruto squeaked.

"Instead of ramen, you should have chicken noodle soup since it's better for you and you're sick." Sasuke said, rummaging through his backpack.

"No Sasuke! Ramen is better!" Naruto yelled, ripping open a packet of instant ramen and dumping it into a pot of water.

"Dobe, she'll get better faster if she eats healthy." Sasuke replied, finally pulling out a can of chicken noodle soup.

"Ha! Too slow, Sasuke! I already started so nyaaaa!" Naruto said, sticking his tongue out.

"I have a better idea. How about you just let Akima-san decide?" Lee said.

Both immediately turned to stare at me. "Well, which do you prefer, chicken noodle soup or ramen?" Sasuke said, giving me a look that said 'pick chicken noodles or there will be consequences'. Naruto just flashed a big grin and said, "Ha! Everyone but Sasuke knows that ramen is better than HIS yucky soup!"

"Uhhh..." I said, not wanting to pick one over the other. "I don't really care..."

"..."

"..."

"Fine, fine, I pick... both!"

Sasuke stared. "Can you eat that much?" he said suspiciously.

"Oh, believe me..." I said, nodding my head vigorously as I felt my stomach churn.

"That's a GREAT idea!" Naruto yelled suddenly, causing me to jump. "Sasuke, I bet I can cook mine faster than yours!"

"Dobe, yours is already in the pot with water, that's called cheating."

"So you forfeit then! I win! Here, Akima-chan, eat it quick!"

I accepted the slightly steaming bowl before Naruto could get too excited and drop it. Smirking slightly, I ate it at Naruto-speed and sat back, anxiously watching Sasuke make my other bowl. He turned around, and said, "I'll just leave this here until you finish... You're already done?"

I nodded happily and snatched the chicken noodle soup before noisily scarfing the entire thing. "Ahhh... much better." I sighed, sitting back, ignoring the gawks from everybody. But you know, after a minute or two, that gets pretty annoying, so I looked up and said, "So, Kakashi-san, aren't you going to interrogate me about my past, present, and future?"

He recovered quickly and gave a snort. "Hardly. I only need your past and future. I already know your present."

"Hmmm... well, I don't really think you need to hear my life's story, so I'll just say how I ended up in the middle of the forest in the rain. These two people kidnapped me and tried to make me drink nasty stuff, but I escaped and was currently running from one of them when the rain started."

"What about the other one?" Kakashi asked, studying my face closely.

I flinched. I had been hoping that he wouldn't catch that. I also couldn't lie... he would pick it up right away, I was sure. "Well.... She wasn't following me anymore..."

"...Why?" the little circle, so friendly before, had now become deathly silent.

"Uhhh..." There was no way around this without lying, and I couldn't do that. "I... made sure that she wouldn't be able to follow me anymore..."

Kakashi heaved a sigh, looked at the ground, then said quietly, "Out with it, Akima."

I gave a shaky grin. "I killed her. I hadn't been aiming to, but I did anyways. My bad. I'll go now. Thanks for all your kindness." I stood up, and without looking at anybody slowly dragged my feet away. Behind me, Sasuke got to his feet sharply. I stopped and looked over my shoulder at him. Then he said, "I challenge you. Fight me."

"No thanks. I forfeit." I turned to leave.

"I'm not going to take 'no' for an answer. I have to test my strength."

I turned around and stared him straight in the eye. "You think I'm good or something? You have plenty of rivals around you. I'll just be crushed."

"You're pretty young to be going around killing chunnins, Akima. Seems pretty good to me." Kakashi said.

I stared. "She was a chunnin? No way! She lost her temper WAY too easily."

"Well, everyone has their weak point..."

I turned back to Sasuke. He stared at me impassively. Suddenly, I came to a decision.

"Alright then. I'll fight you."

Sasuke smirked. "But if I die, I'm coming back to haunt you." I said, grinning.

He didn't give a response, so I settled into the fight stance I'd seen Lee use so many times while watching the anime... _'Wow, it seems so long ago that I had been watching these people, and now I've actually met them...' _I thought. Anyways, that stance is the one where he is turned slightly to the left and has his right palm up in front of him. I don't really know why I picked that particular stance... after all, I could have picked Neji's, or maybe the soccer "ready position". All allowed quick movement, which I was sure I was going to have a lot of...

I suddenly rushed forward and tried a Lee-style 'duck down and kick upwards' move, making Sasuke flip backwards and then take out three shuriken to throw. I crouched on the ground and pulled out a stolen kunai, then threw it as a distraction as I jumped into the trees. "Kage Bunshin no Jutsu," I whispered, forming the seals and creating one shadow clone to circle around behind Sasuke, who had successfully dodged my kunai, and was now anxiously searching the trees. I gave a little shudder when his blood-red eyes passed over my hiding place. _'The Sharingan is so creepy. He looks just like his brother that way.'_ I thought, as my clone unsuccessfully tried to punch him.

My clones were much, much better fighters than I was. I could make them do almost any taijutsu that a normal shinobi should be able to do, meaning upside-down back flips and whatnot. My own hand-to-hand combat skills were limited to a little kicking, punching, and biting, which weren't going to be of much use here. However, my clone was about evenly matched with Sasuke, since, I was copying all the moves I had seen Lee use.

Slowly, but surely, my clone was being defeated. I winced as Sasuke nearly gave her an uppercut, barely chucking her chin as she flipped backwards. Deciding to go for a little confusion strategy, I had her settle into Neji's stance (body turned a little to the right, left arm extended, palm facing forward, right arm drawn back, left leg forward and on toes). As expected, Sasuke paused for a split second and I created another clone to grab him from behind, immobilizing him. Then the first clone charged forward, and instead of punching him hard across the face like I had told it to, it smacked him in the chest with her palm flat, making him take a step backward as my second clone fell onto the ground with a poof. _'What the hell?!' _I thought, _'What's going on? That was the move Neji used to defeat Hinata in the Chuunin Exam! Did she do that because she was in Neji's stance?'_

Sasuke seemed a little puzzled. Then he said, "You don't need to go easy on me. Why didn't you punch me?"

Ahhh, of course it didn't hurt him as much as it should have. After all, the clones can't use chakra...can they? I'll have to think about that one. Wait, they could!! Naruto's Kage Bunshins all turned into girls to defeat Ebisu right? So they could! Oh right, Sasuke's still waiting for me to answer.

"Ummm... well, I forgot to put chakra into that move. Oops." My clone said, chuckling a bit. "It's actually a good thing I forgot to put it in... I shouldn't have been using that stance." She said, as I recalled how bad of a state poor Hinata had been put into after Neji beat her up.

"Well, well, that's enough sparring for now, Akima-san, Sasuke-kun." Kakashi said. "Sasuke, why don't you and the rest start training? I need to speak with Akima-san privately."

I flinched, then jumped down from my hiding place. I was in deep shit. How could I have been so careless to use both Lee and Neji's stances? I need to keep my true past secret...

Sasuke looked at Kakashi, then me. "I need to talk with you later, Akima." He said. I nodded and made my remaining clone disappear into a poof of smoke.

"As do I." Neji said, arms crossed.

"Me too!" Lee and Naruto yelled at the same time. I sighed and nodded at all of them. Looks like there was going to be a lot of explaining to do.

Kakashi led me off and then turned around, looking deadly serious and staring at me straight in the eye. "Who taught you those stances and techniques?"

"Oh, I picked them up, here and there..." I said as calmly as possible.

"Exactly where? And from who?" he said, leaning forward a little.

"From people. I traveled around a lot, and would attend lots of different classes and stuff. Also, I would go to the exams whenever one came up, and then try to learn the moves that the participants use." Dammit, that had to be the worst lie I had ever come up with in my life. It made me sound like a genius or something.

Kakashi regarded me for a few seconds, then drew back with a sigh. "Well, someday, I'm going to get it out of you... you're quite mysterious." He chuckled lightly and strolled back to the campsite. I followed slowly.

Neji and Lee were teamed up against Naruto and Sasuke, both groups displaying incredible individual skills and teamwork. Naruto was fighting Lee with five clones and had sent four more to attack Neji from behind while Sasuke, Sharingan activated, distracted him with many fire jutsus, but Neji simply used Kaiten to counter everything and easily defeated the clones with a few well-chosen pressure point techniques. I watched carefully as one sneaky clone latched onto Lee, but was then shaken off. All in all, the teams were about evenly matched, and, not wanting to disturb them, I sat down quietly under a tree and waited, arms around my knees.

After at least fifteen minutes, Kakashi made them all stop and take a break, as Sasuke and Naruto had suddenly abandoned the teamwork issue and started to claw at each other's faces. _'I wondered how long it would take.' _I thought, smiling slightly at their antics. No matter how hard they tried to hide it, I still believed that they were really good friends deep inside.

"You BASTARD!!! Say that to my face!!" Naruto yelled, turning red. Sasuke turned around and looked Naruto dead in the eye.

"...baka." Naruto's eyes bulged out a little, and he flew towards Sasuke at inhuman speed, but Kakashi grabbed the back of his shirt and held Naruto squirming in the air. He heaved a sigh and said,

"Teamwork is declining lately..."

Sasuke let out a little "hn" in the general direction of Naruto, and then turned to face me.

"Want to talk now?" I said in response to his stare.

"Hn."

I nodded briskly and stood up with a yawn, rotating my shoulder joints until they cracked satisfyingly. "So, whatcha want to ask me?" I said.

He was silent, then walked slowly away, hands in pockets. "Over here." He said without looking back. I followed quietly.

The noise caused by Naruto yelling at Kakashi for stopping him from attacking Sasuke slowly died down, and finally disappeared all together as Sasuke led me further and further away from the camp. Abruptly, he stopped and swiveled around to face me.

"How did you learn those fighting styles? And also the Kage Bunshin no Jutsu, where did you learn that? Those all originated in Konoha. Are you a missing-nin from there? You'd better tell the truth." His Sharingan had activated, giving him the scary vampire look.

"Ahh, well, I've never been to Konoha in my life. I picked up those stances and jutsu from watching other people use them from my travels." I said, trying to act calm. _'It's a good idea to stick to my original lie, even if it's a bad one.' _I thought, inwardly grimacing at how fake it sounded.

He glared. "That's not the whole truth."

'_Shit, shit, think fast!' _My mind was blank. How could I respond to something like that?

"You're right. It's not the whole truth. But you can rest assured that I've never been to Konoha, nor bear it any ill will. And I did learn the stances from watching other people use them." _'Mainly Lee and Neji themselves... but he doesn't need to know that.'_

Sasuke's glare intensified. "Tell me."

I decided to use the 'Sasuke-way'. "I don't have to tell you anything. You want to spill your life to me?" _'Ha! I already know your past. Oooo, wouldn't it be creepy if I started telling it back to him? He would probably think I can read his mind or something. Ok, no creeping people out here.'_

He was silent for a moment, then said, "Fine." and turned away to walk back.

I felt a little sad knowing that he was mad at me, but it couldn't be helped. Sasuke was too smart to fall for stupid lies... and that part about not wanting to spill out my past would work on Naruto, Neji, and Lee too, since I knew that they all had sad childhoods as well. Why did all the good fighters have bad childhoods? Kishimoto-sama be hinting at something? Oh wait, I forgot Shikamaru. He was a good fighter, or at least strategist, but as far as I know he didn't have a bad childhood... Oh well, scratch that.

I followed silently, leaving a respectable space of about 5 feet between us. Sasuke's hands were in his pockets and his shoulders were slouched as he strolled to the camp. I scrutinized his back, trying to figure out how he was feeling. Was he just pissed? A little irritated? Curious? Uncaring? Suspicious? I couldn't tell. I had never been very good at reading people. Especially their backs.

I basically went through the same process with Neji, Lee, and Naruto, though Neji pressed a lot harder about the 'Hyuuga-stance' and seemed even more irritated when I used the 'Sasuke-way' than Sasuke himself. I managed to keep good terms with Lee and Naruto, who were burning with curiosity (Lee's eyes had fireballs in them). Naruto was pretty whiny and constantly pleaded me throughout the rest of the day to tell him specifically how and where I had learned the Kage Bunshin no Jutsu and how long it had taken me to learn it and everything. I spent the rest of the day on relatively good terms with Naruto and Lee and neutral-ish terms with Kakashi, Sasuke, and Neji.

9:00 PM

"It's pretty dark already... can't we go to sleep?" I moaned tiredly, flopping over on my back to prove my point.

"As soon as we finish this game, you can all go to sleep. That should be pretty soon, because I have... UNO!" Kakashi smirked, wiggling his last card in Naruto's face.

"Why you! I bet you hid the rest of your cards up your sleeves!" Naruto said, pointing at and eyeing said sleeves suspiciously.

"No, I didn't! See for yourself!" Kakashi said, pulling up his sleeves and quickly dropping about 15 cards into his lap without Naruto seeing. I glared and pointed an accusing finger at his face.

"Cheater!"

"What!!"

"Cheater cheater cheater!"

"How so?"

"In your lap!"

Kakashi immediately stuffed his hands into his lap and said, grinning cheekily, "I don't see any..."

"AAAAAAA! Kakashi-sensei is a cheater! What kind of ninja are you?!" Naruto half-yelled, half-laughed.

"Ahhh, well... I only did it for Akima-san because she wanted to go to sleep."

"LIAR!" Naruto and I shouted at the same time.

Neji gave a loud sigh, and said, arms crossed, "Perhaps we should continue?"

"That's right! I'm winning after all!" Lee said, fingering his last 3 cards and grinning. "I'm definitely winning that awesome shuriken!"

"Hn. Wild card, yellow." Sasuke said, slapping down said card with a smirk.

"Ha! You failed, baka! I have lots of yellow, so there!" Naruto said, whacking a yellow Draw 2 onto the card pile.

"Ehhh..." I said. I had no yellow, and I also had about 20 cards... none of which would be any use here. "I'll draw 2 cards then..." I drew and still got no yellow. Bummer. "Pass."

"What?! Not a single yellow card in that entire pack?!!"

I glared threateningly at Naruto and said, "No."

"...Oh."

"Then, it's my turn! (SLAP) A yellow 8!!" Lee said, getting fireballs in his eyes (again).

"...Uno." Neji said, delicately slipping his last card, a wild draw four, onto the top.

There was a looooong pause. Then, a group, "WHAT???" and everyone started talking at once.

"Baka! You're supposed to say 'Uno' when you have one card left!" Naruto said.

"Looks like we're done here." Sasuke said, getting up.

"I agree." I said, getting up and stretching.

Lee simply stared at the last card. "I...I was beaten...again...even in cards!! Waaaahh!!"

"Don't worry, Lee-kun. It's just a shuriken." Kakashi said, scooping up all the cards into a big pile.

"The game is called Uno. Therefore, by using logic, one would say 'Uno' when one has won the game." Neji said, arms crossed and eyes closed to Naruto's rantings.

"It's not logical! But you cheated! If we had KNOWN you had only one card left Fuzzy Eyebrows would have given you a draw 2 or something!" Naruto yelled, his voice squeaking a little.

"No, Naruto-kun. I didn't have any cards to change the result..." Lee said, head between his knees.

Neji sighed even louder than before. "Fine, take it then." He said, dropping the shiny and expensive shuriken in front of Lee's shuddering body. "I don't want it that much anyway."

"I don't need it!" Lee said, ignoring it.

"Well, if you're going to get all pissed that I won it and not you, just take it! I'm giving it to you! For cheating! Think of it that way!"

"You weren't cheating! You just didn't know the rules. It's ok, just take it." Lee mumbled.

"I have an idea. How about tomorrow we all play for it again. Ok?" I said, trying to calm things down before Neji started beating on Lee, which it seemed he was close to doing.

Kakashi chuckled heartily, and then suddenly shot up onto his feet. His hands motioned for us to be quiet as he turned his head back and forth, eyes searching the surrounding forest suspiciously.

Everyone sat rigidly, except for Sasuke and me, who had already been standing. Our bodies tensed to their fullest extent. I felt little prickles in my skin as I saw two figures slowly move towards us from the shadows...

My eyes widened in recognition, as did everyone else's. It's hard to forget faces like these...

Itachi and Kisame slowly walked to the very edge of the clearing, where the fire's light barely lit their faces. I noticed Sasuke shuddering violently beside me, and remembered his last crazy attack on Itachi... and how it ended. I grabbed his arm and held it tight, in case he started to try and attack. He seemed not to notice the sudden pressure on his arm. Instead, he stared fiercely at the older version of himself, only 20 feet away.

Kakashi suddenly brushed past me and placed himself squarely in front of our little group. Behind me, I heard Lee whisper, "Is that...?"

I heard a sudden hiss and guessed it was Naruto telling him to either shut up or clarifying his thought, but I didn't dare to tear my eyes from the face of the convict in front of me.

"What is your purpose?" Kakashi bluntly asked, slowly putting his hand behind him and into his kunai holster.

They were silent for a few seconds, until Itachi suddenly spoke. "I would prefer it if you did not interfere, Kakashi-san..." he softly said.

"I'm afraid it will be of my concern very soon if you are after Naruto again..." Kakashi said quietly. "What is your purpose?"

There was silence. Kisame's hand went over his head and firmly grasped his sword handle. Then, he brought it down, cracking the ground. "Shall we?"

"It is as before, then." Itachi said, unmoving.

Kakashi pulled up his forehead protector and with his hand behind his back, motioned for us to rise. Sasuke was shuddering violently, eyes locked onto his brother's form. I wasn't sure if I could stop him if he tried to move...

In a flash, Kakashi had created five shadow clones and had each of them guarding one of the group. "Run away!" Kakashi yelled to us over his shoulder. "You can't fight these guys."

I felt a sudden tug as Sasuke did the exact opposite of his sensei's orders and rushed in, charging up the chirpy Chidori as he went. I tried to grab onto his arm again, but was thrown off and fell to the ground, head reeling with the shock I had received from touching the Chidori. My vision rolled around, then went black, and then turned back on. I had somehow fallen backwards, and the whole clearing seemed reversed; I felt disoriented... hadn't Sasuke been charging the OTHER way? I felt confused, but then I realized I had to stop him and ran after him at top speed. I noticed Naruto running for him too, on my right.

"Sasuke, stop!" He yelled. Sasuke ignored him and continued going, plunging into the woods' darkness. Wait, where's Itachi? Must be ahead of Sasuke somewhere... Then I saw something I never would have expected. Naruto had managed to catch Sasuke, and Sasuke turned and stabbed Naruto in the stomach with the Chidori.

I watched horrified. There was no way... no way that Sasuke had just done that. _'It's an illusion...genjutsu, that's right...' _I put my hands together, index and middle finger extended. I closed my eyes. "Kai!" I said, concentrating hard. When I opened my eyes, I hadn't expected it to work. But instead of Sasuke with his hand inside Naruto, it was... that man who had kidnapped me from Itachi and Kisame. I never named him did I? Let's name him...uhhhh... Unagi! (Yes, I know it means eel. It's from a sushi menu.)

Unagi had stabbed Naruto in the stomach with a kunai... Turning around, I noticed that I had somehow been lured away from the rest of the group, who were currently fighting Itachi and Kisame on the other side of the clearing. Turning around again, Unagi jerked out the bloodstained kunai and let Naruto fall onto the ground.

'_He...'_

I was paralyzed. I couldn't lift a finger, move an inch, as Unagi slowly licked a fleck of blood from the corner of his mouth. _Naruto's blood._

'_He's gone...'_

I didn't believe it. It was just genjutsu, right? An illusion, right? Right? But it wasn't...

'_My fault...'_

I shivered slightly as the wind suddenly picked up and Naruto's hair ruffled in the breeze. I couldn't do a thing to help, it was too late...

'... _didn't even try...'_

I felt scared, angry, despairing, murderous...

'..._just stood there...'_

Naruto would have done something if I was in that situation. He wouldn't have frozen up, he wouldn't have hesitated, nor stood like an idiot like I was as Unagi turned his eyes upon me.

'_My fault...everything... Unagi wouldn't have known, Itachi wouldn't have known, they wouldn't have come...'_

"Broke the genjutsu, huh? You don't have the slightest idea how long and hard I've worked to find you after you left the camp. The Akatsuki's interruption over there made a nice distraction... I only had to dispose of one..." Unagi said, stepping carelessly over Naruto's corpse.

'_If it wasn't for me...he wouldn't have...'_

I felt a sudden prickling on my back, just below my neck. I felt so...angry. It felt like energy was seeping into my muscles... My vision began to blur, than clear so that I could see each individual bug on the trees, each speck of dust, each hair of Naruto's head. My teeth itched horribly, my gums ached as teeth much too long and sharp to fit inside my mouth sprouted... I was barely conscious of the fact that I had fallen onto all fours, and that black stripes were slowly crawling onto my skin everywhere, my fingernails lengthened and grew hard and pointed... I was suddenly surrounded by orange flames that spiraled upwards and all around me... the killer intent... was enormous...I felt ready to rip that man into pieces of bloody pulp...

"**I'll rip you apart!"**

Author's Notes: Sooo, I know that ending part was kinda corny. And I'm very sorry that I'm not good at dramatic stuff... See, after I read it over I thought it was horrible, but I have no idea how to fix it... So no flaming, but constructive criticism is helpful. And also... a cliffhanger! W00t.

PS: Who liked my Uno game???? ...anybody? Reviews are cool. Give them to me, my precioussssssss...


	6. Demons

November 18th was my 15th birthday, ye who care. I speake in the Olde Englishe from henceforth. Whyfore? Cuz. Ok, no more. My birthday sucked. My brother forgot to pick me up at school, and I was freezing my ass of for an hour with 2 other people in my carpool until he showed up... turns out he was sleeping...

WARNING!! Goriness ahead! Beware, ye of faint heart!

Ahh, sorry for lateness people, I post this at about 11:00 on Friday. I was at a dangerous party, you see, involving people spilling embers all over the dry leaves and then poking at them with a stick in an effort to put them out when they caught fire. Naturally, I called them idiots and stomped the fire out myself. Hooray for me.

Lady Eden Your Gift from Death- What's going on with Akima? Well, you'll see... I haven't quite figured it out even now... Maybe this chapter will help there? Itachi was there LAST chapter!! (even though he only had like 4 lines or something) Ouch, Itachi isn't really in this chapter much. But someone else is... Itachi will come back next chapter. No worries! You update sooner than soon, k? Ahhh, I'm only gonna update every Friday peoples!! Unless I feel especially generous or bored. But that will probably only happen during breaks... school sucks. I am soooo slow typing chapter 8... at this rate I won't be able to update every Friday anymore... (ya, I'm on chapter 8... I type ahead so that I have more than a week to make a chapter, but it's not working cuz school is taking over.) :P Long review response!! (waits for applause. Crickets chirp.) "

Dragon Man 180- Tiger demon??? Who knows... About the ramen v. soup thing... are you trying to say that Naruto made the ramen wrong? Mixed warm noodles with soup? Eh? I've never made ramen before, so I don't really know (ignore shocked gasp from Naruto and probably a lot of other people too) Feel sorry for Unagi??? He is a bad bad bad person. Besides, he deserves his (coughcoughcough) never mind. Maybe I should answer reviews at the end of the story. Gai shows up soon... next chapter I think.

SHiZuNe-ChaN- Naruto can't die. It was just for dramatic effect or whatever. I love Naruto too!

Magicians of the Yami- Naruto won't die... How many people did I scare with that?? (One...Two...) Thank you for liking the Uno game!! You're one of the only people who did... more stupid meaninglessness (long word) to come.

TehRadicalEdward- Shikamaru? He'll come. Maybe. I'll have to think about that. Don't tell me you've added him to the very long list of awesome people?? (Itachi is on the very top, naturally...) Excuse me, that receipt is for Itachi and Gaara PLUSHIES not the real them. But I'll pay for Itachi and Gaara plushies too... if you buy them for me. If you do, I'll send you more episodes. If you don't I'll send you more episodes. Quiet!! I'm ALWAYS creative and I NEVER get writer's block on this!! NEVER!!! I... just... watched it again for inspiration... ya. Naruto isn't dead!! ...or is he?? No he's not. I could never do that!! Sheesh! Shika shika... where can I put him in?? Hmmm... since I have a writer's blo- I mean, writer's... um. You know. Thing, on chapter 8, maybe I'll shove him in somewhere... possibly. I do want to put him in. Mineminemine... my precioussss. (Oh wait, Monika's the LOTR obsessed one. Why doesn't she review??? Waaaaaahh... oh, it's becuz I haven't reviewed her thing yet. I'll do that after I finish this.) This review thingie is really long... and I hate school. Save me Itachi, save me! Take me to Narutoland!! Itachi: ...

le otter-chan- Ahhh!! Poor sister... I am more evil than you... especially later on.. (mwahahahaha coughcough) I never knew hanabi meant fireworks either. Did you get that from my story? Oh wait, I get it. You want her to make fireworks. Ok, but first, you will tell ME how to make fireworks, cuz I don't know, then I'll put it in chapter 8 (that's the one I'm working on) Fluff?? But... I don't know... W00t!! OK, probably not that...Fluff... I can't right now... well, maybe by the end of the chapter, you can interpret it as fluff, but it's not really. You can interpret it as... the very very smallest most hard-to-see fluff possible. Because I really suck at fluff. No, that's just what I say when my friends ask me for fluff...I've actually never tried it. Fluff? Fluffy fluff? You can tell I'm thinking about it while I'm typing this. Hmm, maybe...

Demons

Other side of clearing from Akima, with Itachi and all those people

3rd POV

Itachi looked up, startled (almost. Itachi can't be startled). _'This feeling... can it be?' _He looked down to see everyone else had felt the enormous power of the strange chakra as well. Even his otouto, Sasuke, had stopped his incessant struggling against Kakashi's protective clones to feel the chakra more clearly. His curiosity aroused, Itachi sped off, hoping to get a glance of Naruto's demon form and enjoying the feeling of raw power washing over him as he got closer to a secluded patch of foreboding trees. _'This must be the power of the Kyubi. It's so immense...did the Kyubi's seal break?'_

'_Oh no... Naruto's seal must have cracked again. It seems to be getting weaker and weaker as time goes on... this chakra feels a little different though...I hope he can control it...' _Kakashi thought, chasing after Itachi as fast as he could. He had no idea what was going to happen, but wherever Itachi went, he had to follow, to protect his students, of course. Out of the corner of his eye he saw Kisame and said students following, a temporary truce made.

Itachi arrived just in time to see Akima begin her transformation. He watched, wide-eyed as black stripes similar to Orochimaru's seal stripes spread out from under her shirt's back, and her fangs extended to 'vampire-length'. A huge spiral of orange chakra flame surrounded her spasming and snarling body. In a few seconds, the flame died away and Akima looked up, revealing glaring yellow eyes to everyone.

"**I'll rip you apart!!!" **she snarled, bounding towards Unagi on all fours.

Unagi reacted quickly and jumped back, letting loose a barrage of shuriken. Everyone gasped (except Itachi and Kisame, because it's not possible for them to) as the ninja stars thudded into Akima, even in her face and neck, but they suddenly shot out and the wounds closed up in a split second. _'There wasn't even enough time for her to bleed...' _Itachi thought. _'I can still feel the power radiating from her...' _

Akima rushed forward at inhuman speed and slashed viciously at Unagi's face, leaving five vertical red welts and scratching out his eyes in the process. Predictably, he screamed in agony and clawed at his face, causing even more pain to himself.

If Akima had had any control over herself at that time, she may have decided to let him suffer mercilessly and slowly torture him to death. But, the only thing the demon wanted was bloodshed...

She charged him and grabbed his head with one hand and his shoulder with the other, fingernails cutting into his flesh and leaking blood. Then, she bit him with her over-sized fangs and tore out his throat.

He gurgled and died, blood pouring from his neck to form a rapidly growing puddle on the ground. She turned to stare at the closest person... Itachi. He stared back emotionlessly, red eyes gleaming slightly. Slowly, a crimson-dripping, fanged smile spread across her blood-splattered face. She let out a low chuckle and charged forward, claws outstretched. Itachi's eyes widened and he jumped back into a tree. She screeched to a halt, claws drawing dust clouds from the dirt and proceeded to shred its trunk. Soon, it cracked and began to fall, making Itachi jump to another.

Akima may have been a little berserk, but even her frazzled demon brain understood that breaking the trees down underneath her prey wouldn't make him come down, so she ran up the next trunk, feet smashing into its sides with the demon chakra's power. Itachi saw her coming and thought casually about what jutsu he should use. His mind settled on Gogyo Fuuin (Five Element Seal). Akima drew closer, yellow eyes narrowed into slits from the wind.

'_But where is her seal?' _Itachi thought as purple chakra flames sprouted from his fingertips. _'Of course. The burn on her back. I knew it wasn't normal.'_

The split second before Akima reached Itachi, he disappeared and reappeared behind her. "Gogyo Fuuin." He said simply, and rammed his fingertips right under her neck.

Akima froze, her eyes widened in shock as they flipped back and forth between yellow and brown, then closed. Her body went limp and she fell, hitting the ground with a _thunk_.

With a groan, Akima awoke, and tasted blood. It was salty. She noticed the stares of everyone, all standing horrified at what they had witnessed. Save for two.

Kisame thought the whole ordeal had been a real treat. It had been a while since he had seen anyone dealt with so efficiently and yet in a bloodspurting sort of way. That doesn't make sense at all.... Let's just say Kisame thought it was damn awesome and had developed a newfound respect for Akima.)

Itachi had been basking in the power flow and was fairly disappointed when it closed off. He also believed that Akima could go places with her killer intent, and was actually thinking of kidnapping her so that he might learn more about it. He enjoyed her presence near him now, and wished reverently that she would submit willingly to his "kidnapation" and interrogation.

Akima was only dimly aware of the blood dripping from her hands and mouth. None of it was her own. _'I...I... Oh my God...' _She ran for it, arms pumping, breath suddenly raspy. She was scared beyond anything that had happened before. Only one thought crossed her mind. _'I have to get away...' _

She ran and ran, but a small bit of common sense penetrated her exhausted brain. There was no way she could outrun Itachi, or, for that matter, Kakashi. And probably not any of the others, either, in the state that she was in. She rummaged in her pocket and pulled out the teleportation scroll. Snapping open the tape that bound it, she rolled out a map. Placing her finger on the nearest familiar village, she felt the sudden burst of chakra propel her rapidly to the chosen destination.

Itachi's thoughts

Itachi did some quick thinking. His mission had been to bring the Kyubi container back to the Akatsuki council. He didn't know for what reason they wanted it, nor did he care. But, the Kyubi appeared to be dead. He, the Uchiha prodigy, could not return empty-handed. It was a matter of dignity and pride. The Akatsuki wanted any demon right? Akima, if her abnormal chakra burst had been any proof, was a demon container as well as Naruto. The explosion that she appeared in must have been another crack in her demon seal. Therefore, he could bring Akima back instead, with no harm done, and explain why he hadn't brought the Kyubi. A simple matter, really. But, he sincerely hoped that the Akatsuki simply wanted a new powerful member, not anything more sinister... He didn't want any harm done to the vessel of power. He made up his mind.

"Kisame, come."

Itachi and Kisame sped off after the fleeing Akima, only to see and feel the chakra explosion of the teleportation scroll. "Tch," Itachi said. This was going to take longer than expected, but it was still possible to track her down. The scroll had left a faint chakra trail to follow that his fully-developed Sharingan could see. "Kisame, we're replacing Naruto-kun with Akima-san. Follow me." He muttered and sped off, followed closely by our sharky friend.

With Kakashi and co.

"Naruto!" said Kakashi, anxiously shaking said student. Naruto's head lolled around and then drooped. Naruto's gaping hole in his stomach had already been bound tightly, but showed no signs of healing itself. However, Naruto was still alive... for how long, no one knew.

'_Why isn't the Kyubi responding?!' _Kakashi thought, examining Naruto's pale face hopelessly. _'Never before have I seen him so... powerless...'_

"Kakashi-sensei, we should just let him rest. Maybe tomorrow he'll be better..." Lee said, putting a hand on Kakashi's shoulder.

Kakashi let out a sigh and let Naruto sleep. "Yeah... there's nothing any of us can do to help. Just hope... Hold on until tomorrow, Naruto."

Sasuke stood up. "We should take him to the hospital. They can take care of him better than we can." He said, motioning back to the Hidden Wave Village.

"We can't risk moving him in his state." Kakashi said, turning his back on Sasuke. "I'm going to get some water... You guys watch over him." Kakashi took a few steps away, and then looked back over his shoulder. "If he wakes up, don't tell him what happened." With that, he jumped off into the night.

'_What about Akima?' _Neji asked silently, tilting his head back to stare at the bright stars from his sitting position against a tree. _'Naruto will be fine in the morning, I know... He'll jump back up and yell at Sasuke first, then Kakashi, then me... Most likely he'll make fun of Lee... then he'll notice that Akima's not here and run around in frantic circles until Kakashi tells all of us about what happened... Then we'll all go back to Konoha since there's no way to track Akima... And then, in order to restrain Sasuke from running away to go kill his brother, Kakashi, Sasuke, and Naruto will go off to find Akima by themselves, leaving Lee and me to pull weeds and find lost cats. Well, that's not going to happen. The minute I hear Kakashi even mention the word 'Gai' I'm going to tell him to stuff it and force him to take me along. This mission is much more interesting than any of the others I have done.'_

Neji, consoled by his thoughts, drifted off into sleep. However, Sasuke couldn't have slept even if he had wanted to. He lay on his back, also staring up at the stars. Let's dive into his mind now, shall we?

'Shit, I still can't do anything... I couldn't even come close to him! Everyone seems to want to hold me back. Well, that's understandable, since I simply would have been defeated... again... I need power... I need to train more...Akima has power. She has much more power than me. What was that strange chakra burst anyway? And that killer intent, the way she dealt with that man... was horrible... but... she's stronger than me. Even Naruto is stronger than me. And aniki definitely is. If I learn how Akima got her power, than maybe I can achieve it too. With power like hers, I might stand a chance against my aniki. Just maybe...' Sasuke smirked and closed his eyes. 'I'll be coming for you, Akima...'

Morning

"Oi, oi!! Sasuke-baka! Why aren't you up yet?!!"

"Eh?"

Sasuke opened his eyes to look straight into Naruto's exuberant face. "...Naruto?"

"Damn right! Why is everyone still sleeping?! I'm hungry and I want ramen, but there aren't any packets left so we have to go find a store, right now!"

Sasuke sat up, feeling a headache coming on. "Naruto, you're better... and the rest of us aren't. Everyone's tired... and you should be too, you have a hole in your stomach. How can you even get up?"

"I'm FINE! Sheesh! Ah! Kakashi-sensei is waking up!" Naruto bounded up and away onto Kakashi's sleeping bag.

"OOF! Naruto, get off!" The gray tuff of hair sticking out of the sleeping bag said irritably.

"But, but, Kakashi-sensei!! We're out of ramen!!"

"Have some chicken noodle soup."

Naruto froze and turned around slowly to glare at Sasuke. "That's Sasuke's food."

(Sigh) "Sasuke, can Naruto have a can of chicken noodle soup?"

"...Whatever."

"No thanks, I'd rather starve."

"Naruto, just eat the damn soup and go back to sleep." Neji said.

"What!? YOU!! You want me to eat chicken noodle soup, and then you want me to take a nap in the morning?? Absolutely unforgivable!"

Naruto continued ranting for quite some time afterwards, which everyone simply ignored. Then...

"Ahh! Fuzzy Eyebrows, look at your hair!!" Naruto laughed happily and pointed at a sleepy Lee with hat hair.

"Yes, Naruto, when people sleep, their hair gets messed up. Except yours, because it's always messed up." Neji said sarcastically.

"Yeah, I bet you use GIRL'S conditioner and everything to keep your hair sleek and smooth."

Neji sniffed and said, "Herbal Essences, as a matter of fact. And it's a lot cooler than yours, I might add."

"HA!! Neji's hair is girly, Neji's hair is girly..." Naruto laughed, then abruptly sat down with a plop. Ahhh, I'm hungry for ramen! If Akima hadn't eaten that last one, I would have some right now... Where's Akima anyway?"

There was a silence.

"Eh? Eh? Is she ok? Where is she?" Naruto started to run in frantic circles. Then he jumped on Kakashi, again.

"Oof."

"Where's Akima??"

"Hmmm, well after you got hurt, Akima did something weird and killed him, then ran away."

"Huh... she's ok?"

"Probably..."

"We should go after her! What are we waiting here for?!"

"We can't track her, dobe." Sasuke said.

"Why the hell not???"

"She used a teleportation scroll... I can't follow it." Kakashi sighed.

"Oh... what about Itachi?" Naruto said, suddenly remembering the psycho killer.

Sasuke stiffened, and his eyes briefly flared red before returning to black. "I don't know... He ran off after Akima disappeared."

"Was he chasing her??" Naruto asked, incredulously.

It was Kakashi's turn to stiffen. Was it possible? He hadn't thought of that... If Akima was a demon, and Itachi was after Naruto, who was a demon, who had appeared to be dead, then...

Kakashi gave a little gasp. "I think he might have been, Naruto... she was a demon."

There was a silence.

"Akima-san, a demon? No way!" Lee said.

"How else could you explain her strange power?" Kakashi said, standing and stretching himself, then rolling up his sleeping bag. He gave a 'look' to Naruto. "Just because she's a demon doesn't mean she has to act differently from a human. And it doesn't mean that she's evil either."

Naruto simply stared at his sensei. "We definitely need to go after her." He finally said firmly, punching a fist into an open hand.

With Akima (1st POV)

I was splatted into the ground at high velocity. All around was sand, sand, and more sand. It was still night, so it wasn't hot yet... in fact it was rather cold. Luckily, it wasn't too dark because the moon and stars shined brightly, lighting the surrounding area blue-ish.

"Ok, ok, first things first, find shelter, then think things through. Shelter first. Just don't think about it, you'll get a headache." I said to myself. It was a habit I had when I was stressed. Talking to myself, I mean. Not finding shelter. Never mind.

I began to walk slowly towards a blurb in the distance. Yes, a blurb was what it looked like since it was rather far away. The blurb never got any closer, even after what seemed like hours of walking.

"Why the hell am I here? I specifically pointed at the Hidden Village of Sand. Yes. There. Not just sand. Wait a second. 'Hidden' Village? Don't tell me it's invisible or something!" I moaned irritably.

"There's no point in moaning over something that can't be helped. Just keep walking."

"Maybe I should think things through. Yes, while I'm out here in the middle of no where, it would be nice to have some nice, organized questions. Ok, lesse... Apparently, I am a demon. Or a demon container. Whatever. So, then..."

Is Naruto ok? Most likely. He does have the regeneration thing anyway. Is it enough to save him from a stab with a kunai? Probably. There's no need to worry about his safety... right? Moving on...

How did I get a demon in me? No idea. Not a single clue.

Why is it a tiger? At least, I think it is. There were stripes and fangs and everything. Or maybe it's a tiger simply because the author couldn't think of anything else. She may have wanted to do a dragon, but kinda thought it would be hard to differentiate that from a snake, and plus, Akima would have had to turn scaly and stuff.

Where is the seal? Actually, I think I can answer that, though it's a guess. My only wound so far seems to be that thing on my back that I can't see. I wish I could look at it. Is it a spiral like Naruto's seal? If that burn is my seal, then I must have received it right after the gas explosion that took me to this world. Does switching worlds give you a seal? And why a tiger? Is it random?

My organized mind had turned jumbled again. I was only going in circles and could only give guesses about why everything had happened. No point thinking about it.

My feet had taken me to the outskirts of a deserted village (haha, deserted desert? Get it? Ok, not funny...). The sky was lit with the stars and moon, which was full by the way, so I judged it to be about midnight. Suddenly, I was snapped out of my thoughts by a shrill scream.

"No, no! I swear, I won't do it again, ever! Please, just let me go, I'll leave, I'll do anything you want..." The man's voice broke down into a whimper, then rose into a squeak, "No! Please, please, I beg y-" There was a horrible squishing sound, then silence. I stopped walking and silently tiptoed up to the corner. After pausing for a second, I risked a quick peek.

Something shot out and wrapped itself around my leg, then dragged me forward into a lighted courtyard. I immediately struggled and cursed, but then it hit me that it was sand, not an actual person. 'Then, that means...' I thought hurriedly, before coming face to face with an all too familiar short, red-haired boy with a gourd strapped to his back.

"What do you think you're doing?" he said coldly, sand swirling around himself aggressively.

I replied before I could think about it. "What do you think YOU'RE doing?"

There was a silence where he just stared at me, as if awed by my rudeness.

"Uh, well, I mean, grabbing people when they aren't doing anything wrong is kinda curious, you know?" I said, smiling shakily. 'My God, Gaara doesn't have a sense of humor, what am I doing??'

"You were spying on me. Are you an assassin?"

I gave a little snort. "Yeah right..."

"What were you doing spying on me?"

"I wanted to know why someone was screaming their head off."

"... That person is dead."

"I can tell. Oh hey, you're a demon, right Gaara? Maybe you could tell me a little about mine?" I said, then clasped a hand to my mouth. 'I did NOT just say that. What the hell is wrong with me?'

Gaara was silent for a long moment, examining me closely. "You're a demon too?" he said softly, lowering me to the ground.

"Ah well, I think I am. I mean, if going crazy and shredding people into little pieces is a clue. Oh yeah, and growing fangs and claws and everything."

"How did you get your demon attached to you?" Gaara said, sand smoothly flowing back into his gourd.

"See, I don't have the slightest idea. This is what I need help in. Do you think you could teach me to talk to it or something?"

Gaara stepped forward. "Do you have a seal?"

"I think so... I can't really see it."

Gaara gave me a funny look.

"It's on my back, so I can't see it."

Gaara sighed. "If you want..." he began, then stopped.

"...Yes?" I said as nicely as possible. Must be nice to Gaara.

"...you could stay over at my house." He finished quickly.

I raised an eyebrow, a skill that I had practiced back in the old world. "Would your brother and sister mind?" I asked, knowing the answer.

"Temari wouldn't mind, and I don't care what Kankuro says. How did you know I had a brother and sister?"

"Well, you're pretty famous, aren't you Gaara?" I said, recovering quickly. 'I keep letting things slip out... need to be more careful.'

Gaara was silent for a moment. "I guess I am..." he said finally. "Shall we, then?" He motioned with his hand to his left.

"Ok!"

Gaara began a slow stroll down the alleyway. I silently followed, taking in the sights. The only lights on were a few street lamps and the windows in an occasional inn or tavern. On one occasion, a man, drunk I suspect, stumbled out of one of the bars and nearly puked on me. That event was quite frightening, not only because of I almost got puked on, but because I had to jump on Gaara to prevent his murderous sand from eating the unfortunate man. Luckily, I think he was surprised by my actions and allowed enough time for the drunkard to stagger back into the rowdy pub. But afterwards, he turned on me.

"You let that person escape." It was a statement. How can one respond to that?

"...yeah... So?"

"He was disrespectful."

"No shit! I almost died there!"

"Why didn't you allow me to kill him?"

"Because he didn't do anything wrong... though I do find almost being puked on quite disgusting. But that's not a big enough wrongdoing or whatever to be punished to that extent."

"... Drinking alcohol impairs one's judgment. If he had had his wits about him, he would have fled at the sight of me, much less come close to vomiting on my companion."

"So you're saying you should have killed him because he should have been afraid of you?"

"The meaning of my existence is only to kill everyone other than myself."

"...Hmmm...well then, why isn't everyone dead yet? And furthermore, why are you helping me out?"

"...I would have destroyed everyone by now, but the occasion has not arisen. And as for the reason I am helping you, it's because... you remind me of someone I once knew, who showed me a different way of living."

"Naruto, right?"

"... You know him? How did you know about that?" Gaara asked, stopping his walk and turning to squarely face me.

"Ehhh...well, that's my past isn't it? I do know him... He told me about his little Chuunin Exam adventure with you. Quite interesting really. Don't look so surprised, you think Naruto would miss the opportunity to brag?"

Gaara scrutinized me carefully. It was rather creepy. "So Naruto told you I was a demon, and you came here because you thought I might be able to help you learn more about your seal."

"Yeah, close enough. Don't worry, though, Naruto only told me you were a demon because he knew I was one. He didn't yell that out to everyone."

Gaara started to walk again, his back turned to me. "Why didn't Naruto help you?"

"He couldn't. We tried to have him talk to it, but it never worked. I think it might be easier now though, because it got its first crack."

"What do you mean?"

"Well, let's just say I'm more 'in touch' with my demon side now."

We finally arrived in front of a large stone building, approximately 3 stories high. It had only one window that I could see, and that was on the top level. The surrounding houses were dwarfed by this mansion. 'As befits the Kazekage's children...' I thought dryly. 'I wonder where they got all the stone to make this village from.'

Gaara opened the door and gestured for me to come inside. I stepped cautiously into the interior, and Gaara closed the door with a soft click. Indoors, it was extremely dark, but it appeared to be a dining room of some sort. To the left was a corridor, and straight ahead was a closed door from which muted sounds of scary music emitted from.

"Kankuro is probably watching a horror movie. He likes to piss himself late at night for some reason." Gaara said. As if on cue, a shrill scream sounded from the closed door.

"Ehhh... why do people like to scare themselves?" I said, mostly to myself.

"Don't know. By the way, do you sleep?"

"Of course I... oh, you don't, that's right. I can stay up a little longer, though."

"I'll show you to your room. You can sleep whenever."

"K, thanks."

Gaara led me down the corridor to the left, in the complete darkness of course. I dragged a hand along the wall so I wouldn't smack into anything.

There was a click and Gaara suddenly disappeared. "Um, Gaara?" I asked tentatively. There was no response. I raised my voice a little louder. "Oi, Gaara? You still here?" My voice sounded terrifyingly small in the complete silence that enveloped the corridor. "Hello?" I couldn't stop the little waver from entering my voice. It was pitch black and Gaara had ditched me in the middle of his big, creepy house. How nice of him.

Resigning myself, I crept forward, my right hand still on the wall. I also kept my left hand out in front of me. All of a sudden, my right hand touched a space. 'Well, let's go that way, then.' I thought to myself, and turned to the right to smack into a door.

It took a moment to recover from the shock. Here, I had been so careful only to be taken down by a door. I rubbed my abused nose sorrowfully, then scrabbled my hand around until I found the doorknob. I pushed it open and someone on the other side stepped back quickly to avoid being hit. We stared at each other for a moment. Rather, I squinted at the person until I was sure it was Gaara, not someone else. Did I mention it's dark?

"Why did you ditch me in a spooky corridor?" I asked, trying my best to keep my voice calm, though I could feel a vein pulsing in my forehead.

"I did not ditch you, I merely walked down here. Apparently you couldn't figure out how to open the door." Gaara inhaled deeply. "You have a nosebleed." I reached a hand up and found that I did. Funny how I didn't notice. He retreated back into the dark room, and shortly later, I heard his footsteps return. Something fluttered at my face. I grabbed at it instinctively, thinking it was a cobweb. I hate spiders. But after feeling it, I recognized that it was a tissue. I wiped and blew my nose.

"Hey, do you think you could turn on a light or something? I can't see a thing." I moaned. "And where should I put this tissue?"

"You can't see in the dark?" Gaara said, taking the tissue then stopping.

"No." I replied, snorting derisively. "I suppose you can? Oh yeah, I need another tissue please, by the way."

Gaara didn't appear to be listening. I could hear him breathing harshly.

"Gaara?" I said, moving a little closer, then stepping back when I recognized the next noise. It sounded like something being dragged around on the sidewalk, kinda gravelly. Like... sand moving around inside a gourd.

'Yes, Akima, you are so smart. Let's hand Gaara a bloodsoaked tissue, shall we?' I thought, reaching behind me for the door handle.

"Ok, ok, take deep breaths, and give me back the tissue..." I said soothingly, praying I could get out before he tried to kill me. But the door opened inward of course. 'Tis fate I tell you. If I wanted to get out, then I would have to move towards him first.

"C'mon Gaara, you can control it..." I said, twisting the handle and moving inch by inch forward. Gaara seemed to be clutching at his head and was moaning a little now.

"Oi Gaara, hang on... take control..." I hesitantly put my hand on his shoulder. "Calm down, think... happy thoughts!" I could have kicked myself. That's what you get for watching too many movies. (If you don't get it, ask a friend who watches dumb movies. Or I guess you could just ask me.)

Gaara didn't say anything for a while, though he still panted heavily and did not remove his hands from his head.

"...think... happy... thoughts?" he said sarcastically.

"Well, it took your mind off it, right?" I said defensively.

"I don't have... happy thoughts. Ever."

"Sure you do. What about..." I stopped. There were no happy memories I could remember from Gaara's mind. It was all Yashamaru telling him that nobody loved him and assassins trying to kill him and fighting with his brother.

"Ok, I'm going to MAKE a happy memory. I'll buy you some ice cream. Once I get money. Do they even have ice cream here?" I said, knowing it all sounded terribly, terribly corny and I wanted to kill myself for having said it out loud. But I couldn't really think of anything else. Gaara never had any friends, so making one would be a happy thing, right?

Author's Notes: Yo. I be tired. I also be procrastinating. Soccer game early tomorrow, so sleep now. No complete sentence. No correct grammer. No corrct spllng. No punkuashun. No do anything. Mouth hurt, braces evil. Rubber bands and headgear worse. Has cold sore. And allergies. And a rash behind ear where glasses rub. Hate glasses. Hate contacts more. Sleep now.

2nd Author's notes: I edited this chapter before posting it... in the first version, I didn't have the Itachi vs. Akima fight because I forgot that you needed to be surprised to get out of the demon state, but then I got carried away with the Gogyo Fuuin and didn't know how to have Akima run away if she was captured by Itachi, since he is practically impossible to escape. So, we just say she wakes up when she hits the bottom, k? Naruto was a heavy sleeper, that's why he slept for a whole day in the anime after experiencing it, think of it that way.''


	7. Me and the 5 Other Me's

Author's Notes: First of all, I'd like to say my apologies. Gomen nasai! I would give you a long list of excuses to explain why I didn't upload on Friday like I usually do, but I'm sure that you don't want to hear them. So, I'll be quiet. Also, I'd like to say my apologies for this horrible chapter. It was written partially on sugar high after one of my friend's party's. Enjoy… and again, I'm sorry! Review responses on bottom from now on.

2nd Author's Note: Well, I went and patched up this chapter and answered the reviews and… then discovered that I can't post yet. It said "Disabled, see homepage for details…" don't know what that's about, but I'm sorry I haven't updated yet.

3rd: And it's working now, finally. Read the above, I'm too lazy to do it again.

Me and the 5 other Me's 

With Kakashi and co.

"So what is our course of action?" asked Sasuke, rolling up his sleeping bag quickly and efficiently.

"Well, first we'll go back to Konoha-" Kakashi started.

"NO!" shouted everyone at once. Then they all stopped to stare at each other.

"Let me finish, then you can complain." Said Kakashi. "There is a reason for this."

"But-"

"I said wait, Naruto! Just hold on one second, ok?? Ahem. The reason for this is that Neji and Lee are not really under my care, they are under Gai-"

Neji interrupted, just like he promised in the last chappie (remember? Well, he did.) "I do not believe that we need to be under his protection at all times, especially in an urgent situation such as now. Our highest priority is the safety of all teammates, including, but not limited to, Akima-san. Since she could possibly be in grave danger at this moment from two S-class criminals, it is our duty to search for her and save her. Any time wasted on the protection of those not in immediate danger should be second priority, if not less." Neji took a deep breath, in which Naruto swiftly cut in.

"You rehearsed this, didn't you?" he said suspiciously.

Neji gave a quick nod. "I'm not done, though; please let me continue for the good of the team. Teamwork is the most important aspect of a ninja, is it not, Kakashi?"

Kakashi opened his mouth to speak, then closed it, then opened it again, hesitated, then said, "You're good at this. Who told you my secret?"

Neji looked a little puzzled. "What secret?"

"Never mind. Anyways, Neji's fine speech passed with flying colors. If all of you can think up similar reasons to why the team or you personally should carry on searching for Akima instead of retreating to the safety of Konoha, then we shall continue our quest to save the damsel in distress (it rhymes! Sort of) and take down the bad guys in the process." Kakashi said.

"Right…" Sasuke sighed.

"Me first! Me first!" Naruto jumped up and down and waved his hand in the air.

"Yes, Naruto?"

"We should follow Akima because she's our friend!!"

"…That's a good answer I guess… Naruto passes." Kakashi said, knowing the real reason of Naruto's willing pursuit.

"I'm next!" Lee said. "Umm… We should follow Akima because…" he gave a little cough. "It is the man's job to protect the woman, even if she can beat the bejeezus out of us!"

"I suppose that can count too… though I'm sure Akima would pulverize you if she ever heard you say that… and Sasuke?"

Sasuke said nothing. _'I know he's not going to settle for my reason of going after her to gain power and to get the chance to meet Itachi again… think, Sasuke, think!'_

"…because she's our… … … friend?" Sasuke said, saying the last part very softly so that no one could hear it, except for Kakashi's keen ninja ears.

"Sorry, Sasuke, that's already been taken. Anything else?" Kakashi said.

Sasuke fidgeted a little. Naruto could think of a billion reasons why they should go after Akima, but Sasuke seemed to only have one thought in his mind, and it wouldn't get out. That thought was…

'_Powerpowerpowerpowerpowerpowerpowerpowershitshitshishit I can't think of anything! Thinkthinkthinkthink-'_

Luckily, he was saved by a sudden tornado, causing everyone to brace themselves against the onslaught. Over the rushing sound of the wind came an all too familiar voice…

"Did someone utter the name of the beautiful green beast???"

Gai appeared in his scary trademark pose, flashing his smile (twinkle) and gave everyone an oversized thumbs-up. The reaction of our little group was immediate.

Kakashi, Neji, and Sasuke clapped their hands to their foreheads in unison. Naruto's eyes got big and his mouth hung open stupidly. Lee flung himself onto his favorite teacher with a yelp of joy.

"Gai-sensei!"

"Lee!"

"Gai-sensei!"

"Lee!"

"Gai-sen-"

"Ahh, Gai, I'm afraid I have to interrupt you for a moment." Kakashi said, a vein in his forehead throbbing.

"Ah, my springtime of life rival, Kakashi! That attitude of yours is so hip, it makes me mad!"

"…right… anyways, I suppose you're here because I mentioned your name a while back?"

"Indeed, I had just returned to Konoha after picking up your student from Hidden Wave Village. It then caught my attention that someone had said my name in a far off place, and believing that my students were in danger, my fighting spirit broke loose and I rushed off to help. I am sorry it took so long to reach you. Am I in time to be of assistance?"

"Yes, I need you to take Sasuke back to Konoha, since he has no good reason to come with us on our… mission." Kakashi said, giving a 'look' to Sasuke. "Unless, he can think of one now."

Sasuke's mind blazed with sudden activity. _'Absolutely no way I'm going back, and with HIM, nonetheless… Ok, thinkthinkthinkthinkthink… OH!!'_

"Akima's strange burst of chakra may be worthy of further research that may result in benefiting Konoha Village and/or the protection of its people. If indeed, it does not help in the slightest, then it can just be archived in the great search of knowledge and perhaps future generations will find use for it." Sasuke said quickly, eyes darting around as if daring someone to laugh. Naruto almost took the dare, but didn't because he personally didn't find it that funny to be indirectly 'researched'. (people understand this, yes?)

Kakashi sighed, something he does quite often in this fanfic. "Well, I guess that's good enough. Sasuke, you're in. Gai, I'm afraid that your two students are staying with me for the good of the mission… unless they have changed their minds?"

Neji shook his head frantically, and Lee hung his head, ashamed.

"Gai-sensei, I'm so sorry but there is a damsel in distress!! It is my duty to save her!" Lee said, a determined (but not quite blazing) look in his eyes.

"Don't worry, Lee! You are in the springtime of your life, and this damsel deserves your aid! If ever you should need my assistance again, then call upon the wind, and I will arrive with all the haste I can muster! Why am I ending all in exclamation points! I don't know, but it's fun! Time to stop!" And with a little whirlwind of leaves, Gai disappeared.

"Ok, team, move out!" Kakashi said, waving his hand in that particular movement that I tried to describe but couldn't (hint: it's the one that means 'move out').

Lee jumped off into the trees, followed closely by Naruto. Neji and Sasuke waited around for a second or too, then asked in unison, "Where?"

Kakashi scratched the back of his head. "Umm, who has a good sense of direction here? I don't because I get lost somehow everyday before I meet you guys, even on the road of life."

"Let's just follow the other two. Their guess is as good as ours." Neji said, even though he knew he was so bad-ass that his guess was ALWAYS better than everyone else's. Sasuke knew that his guess was better too. So anyways, they all followed Lee and Naruto, whose guess happened to be in the exact direction Akima had been running before she used the teleport scroll. Coincidence? It may be, it may not. One thing is for sure, and that is that Lee and Naruto have no idea where they're going.

At Gaara's house, Hidden Village of Sand, Morning

(YAWN) I sat up blearily, rubbing my eyes. My room was one of the many storage rooms in Gaara's house, and was full of old, dusty stuff. There were books on the floor and on high, rickety bookcases and a cramped little bed that I was currently curled up in. Perfect for allergies, by the way. Although there was no window in my room, I could still discern the hallway light on outside my door. _'Wonder if I should bother getting up…' _I thought sleepily. It was one of those days where all you want to do is sleep until noon and forget about all the horrible problems there are in your life. So I laid my head back down onto the ever so nice and soft pillow and pulled the comfy warm blankets back up to my chin, and was just about to close my eyes again when something chittered by my ear.

"Eh?" I mumbled and turned my head to look…

"Holy shit!!!" I yelled, tumbling out of bed, all my hopes for sleep gone in a flash of adrenaline. I _hate _spiders!! Hatehatehatehatehate… actually, spiders are fine as long as they stayed away from me and my belongings, namely my food and bed. That particular bug was infringing upon my rules.

The spider sat there, chittering angrily (or so it seemed) at me. I stared at it for a few seconds, then sighed and gave a nasty glare. That's when I turned around and tripped over a stack of old books, sending up a huge cloud of dust.

(AH-CHOO) _'Great, all I need…' _I thought. Meanwhile, the spider crawled back into the covers. I wouldn't be sleeping here again, that was for sure. Figuring that I should clean up the mess, I got down on my hands and knees and felt around for the fallen books. I succeeded only in knocking over several more columns, so I gave it up as a lost cause and trudged to the door, only to have it crash open, barely missing my nose.

"Who the hell are you?!"

I squinted into the blinding light to see a girl with (4???) blond ponytail/pigtail thingies in a white dress (kind of sort of. Since I suck at descriptions, let's forget about them. Everyone knows what Temari looks like, right?)

"…Eh, I'm Akima…" I mumbled, trying to get some gunk out of the corner of my eye. Temari was glaring fiercely, and I noticed that one of her hands was firmly clasping the fan on her back. Not really relishing the idea of death by wind, I tried to explain quickly.

"I met Gaara late last night and he said I could stay here. We didn't really want to wake you up and Gaara said you wouldn't mind anyways, so sorry for not telling you?" I ended in a pleading question because Temari had taken the fan off and was now holding it reminiscently of a sword. There wasn't enough space in the hallway to open it completely, and in fact there wasn't very much space to wield it as a sword either.

"You get one last try before I kick your ass outta here. That's a load of BS that Gaara would invite you in. Do you know who you're dealing with?"

"Umm, I'm not lying! Ask Gaara… please?" I said, warily watching the fan tip hover in front of my face.

"You have 5 seconds to get out of my house. 5…4…"

I gave a little squeak and vacated the premises. Luckily, I had no belongings with me besides what I wore and the few kunai and scrolls I had stolen from a certain ninja a while ago. Those I hadn't taken off last night, being lazy. It was okay to be kicked out, really… Gaara would find me later and make me somehow buy him ice cream. Speaking of which, I would probably have to go make some money…

I sped down the corridor, (now lighted) narrowly missing Kankuro who was holding a glass full of orange juice. I could feel his eyes staring at my back in shock as I threw open the front door and jumped out into the sandy street. Pivoting sharply I flung myself into a nearby coffee shop. It may have been my imagination, but I could swear that the wind had whistled by my ear a little too fast for comfort. Reaching up, I felt a little thin scratch, not enough to draw blood, on my earlobe. Grimacing, I took notice of my surroundings. It looked to be about midmorning, and the coffee shop was full of people, who all happened to be gaping at me in silence. Then, the whispering started.

"Did she just come out of _that _house?" I heard a woman whisper to her partner, who nodded avidly.

"She went into _that _house and survived?"

"What luck that young lady has to be alive!"

I watched them all for a little while then strolled up to the counter, where an old woman was busily wiping at a mug. As I leaned on the counter, she put it down and peered at me through thick glasses.

"Excuse me, would you happen to know of any job vacancies around here?" I asked as politely as possible.

"What?" she said loudly, cupping a hand to her ear.

"Know of any job vacancies?" I said a little louder.

"Whoa, no need to shout there, little miss! I got a vacancy right here, from 9 to 5. Want it?"

"Yes, please!" I said enthusiastically. Though I had no idea how to make coffee since I hated the stuff, it was still a good job, for a start.

"Alright, you do the cash register here because they make the darn buttons too small nowadays for my old fingers. Think you can handle it?"

"Sure!"

5:00 PM, Hidden Village of Sand

Punching in cash register buttons at a coffee shop proved to be an incredibly boring job. After the morning rush of customers, the shop had been practically empty, and the old lady had taken to reading a book, which I interpreted as a 'Do Not Disturb' sign. So, I sat around and daydreamed and doodled on napkins and myself with a pen I found on the ground. By 5, a masterpiece of artwork covered my left arm, consisting of many things of all sorts. Will this have any impact on the storyline? No. Why did I put it in here? Because I can't think of anything else to happen.

Anyways, I walked outside and wondered about what I should do now. Unfortunately, the old lady said she would pay me at the end of the week, so I had to rely on myself until then…

'_Gaara, where are you?' _I thought, gazing towards the huge expanse of desert from my vantage point on top of some rocks near the edge of the village. I remembered Gaara had come here once in the anime, so I had hoped he would return, but so far, there was no such luck. As soon as the sun set, I knew it would be freezing cold and I didn't have a place to stay.

'_Shoot, how did I get myself into this mess?' _I sighed and lay down, putting my hands behind my head and closing my eyes, one knee up. _'Mom, why did you send me here? To be a ninja, huh? It would be cool, but there's no way I can handle it. I can't look underneath the underneath and all that… I can do jutsus and stuff, but that's just memorization, really. I bet my chakra control is horrible. And my demon…' _I gave another little sigh. _'Hello, demon, can you hear me?' _I called out into my mind. _'Demon? Anyone home?' _I was talking to myself and I knew it. Is this what a crazy person feels like?

"Akima."

I sat up at once, my hand instinctively reaching down to the kunai holster strapped to my thigh. I released my breath, relief flooding through me as I saw Gaara standing nearby.

"Geez, Gaara, where've you been? I got kicked out by your sister."

"Temari?"

"Yeah, she didn't believe me when I said that you let me stay. I can't really blame her though, I would be a little suspicious of someone I didn't know in my house."

"I'm sorry."

I gawked at him, mouth open. Where the heck had that come from?

"What for?" I said, raising a quizzical eyebrow.

"That you were kicked out."

"It wasn't your fault…"

There was an uncomfortable silence that seemed to stretch out for hours. "Well, then what do you want to do? I can't buy you ice cream yet, 'cuz I get paid at the end of the week." I said, standing up and brushing sand from myself.

"I don't care."

"Umm… so want to train?" I said, surprising myself.

Gaara blinked slowly and said, "I don't train."

I gave a cynical glare and rolled my eyes. "Fine, genius. Want to help ME train?"

"Whatever."

I took that as a yes and walked a little ways off.

"Since your sand protects you automatically, I can attack you with basically everything right?"

Gaara nodded. I took out a kunai, but didn't really relish the idea of throwing it at a (so it seemed) unarmed person. So, I aimed it a little to the right of him and threw. It whizzed past harmlessly, and Gaara's sand did not even come out of the gourd. He threw a you-are-so-pathetic look at me and sighed.

"Just testing you!" I shouted in response to his look. "I, unlike certain other people, didn't want to hurt you."

Gaara sniffed delicately and had his sand retrieve my kunai from a little ways away behind him. Then he took it jammed it into his chest. Or rather, tried to, since the sand automatically rose to create a barrier, effectively shielding the attack. He raised an eyebrow at me and smirked.

"I can't be harmed. Give it everything you've got."

I 'hmphed' and said. "Don't ever do that again, though. You scared the shit outta me."

Gaara made no response, so I decided to try to do a jutsu. "Kagebunshin no jutsu!"

Five me's poofed into existence all around us. "Ok, people, let's see how much chakra we all have! First person to get past Gaara's sand gets my week's salary! Anything goes!"

I charged at Gaara. "Katon, Goukakyuu (Blazing Fireball) no jutsu!" I said, and blew a large fireball in his direction. Then I remembered Sasuke's trick and threw a couple shuriken into it too, though I knew it would make no difference against Gaara's sand. And indeed, it did not. The sand flowed out of the gourd in waves and enveloped the fireball and shurikens in one big explosion. Gaara did not so much as blink.

"There seems to be a problem with your kagebunshins." He said emotionlessly, gesturing behind me.

"What?" I said and started to turn, then stopped. Smirking, I faced Gaara again. "Almost got me there. If you start to attack me, I'll just die."

Gaara said, "I'm not going to attack you. Haven't you noticed that your clones aren't doing anything?"

I DID notice… after he said that. I whipped around to see all my clones standing around aimlessly. "Oi, Akimas!!" I shouted. "Get your asses out here!"

"It's too troublesome." AkimaOne said, hands in her pockets. She promptly sat down with a sigh and started fiddling with the sand.

My jaw dropped. "Ok, first of all, I'm the original, so you have to do what I say. Second, the only reason you exist is because of me, so you'd better make use of the time given to you. Third, that's Shikamaru's line!" I growled. AkimaOne yawned loudly.

"Hey, you wanna piece of me?? I don't have to do anything you say!" yelled AkimaTwo, punching a fist into her hand. "I can kick your ass, right here, right now!"

"Now, now, fighting is bad! Can't we think of a way to resolve this in a nice, peaceful manner?" said AkimaThree, stepping forward and then quivering back when AkimaTwo and I glared at her.

"Pacifist!" AkimaTwo spat at her. (This line is dedicated to TehRadicalEdward. It's an inside joke.)

"Hey, look you guys! I made a sand castle!" shouted AkimaFour. Everyone stared at her. Not only was her 'sand castle' just a little lump of sand (it's quite hard to make a sand castle without any water, you know) but she was smiling and giggling much too happily to be normal.

"Nooo!! The other ones make sense, but I don't have an ounce of ditziness in me!!" I screamed, clawing at my face. That's when I noticed AkimaFive. She was sitting with her arms around her knees, face obscured by her brown hair.

"Hey, are you okay?" I said, approaching her silent form. She said nothing. "Hey… Come on, what's wrong?" She shook her head.

"Oi, I still have to fight you!" AkimaTwo said and stormed over.

"OK wait, wait, this is getting too confusing…" I said, rubbing my temples. "Are you same guys going to appear every time I use Kagebunshin?"

"Probably. They seem to be your personalities." Gaara, who had been forgotten until now, said interestedly. "This is a problem caused by demon chakra, most likely. Our kind of chakra is much stronger than most others', so it creates some side effects. For example, I cannot use anything other than sand attacks. Naruto has a hard time learning new jutsus, and also had terrible chakra control. You… have alternate personalities in your kagebunshins. That's really not that bad, compared to our handicaps. You may have other 'perks', however."

"Wow, Gaara, I've never heard you say so much before. How did you know all that?" I asked.

"I studied."

"I see. Well then, group, looks like we'll have to live with each other from now on, because I'm definitely going to need to use Kagebunshins at some point." I said tiredly. "First of all, you need names. And they will be given according to your personalities to make it easier for the readers to remember who is who. First, AkimaOne!"

"Eh?" she said from her position on the ground.

"You're lazy, so you will be Lazyass from henceforth."

"Whatever." She replied, not looking up.

"AkimaTwo! The violent one, will be Psycho."

"I'll kill you!" Psycho shouted, waving a fist in the air.

"AkimaThree, the pacifist! You will be Pacifist."

"You couldn't think of anything, huh?" said Psycho.

"You be quiet. Ahem. AkimaFour! You're Ditz.

(Giggle giggle) "Do you like my nails, Akima???"

"No, they aren't even painted, and if they were I wouldn't like them anyway. Stop waving them at me. AkimaFive! For lack of a nicer name for your personality, you're going to be Depressed."

Depressed said nothing. I sighed and said, "Now then, who wants to attack Gaara???"

"I do I do!" Psycho squeaked and then she leered over at Gaara hungrily. "I like how blood tastes, it's so yummy…"

"Anyone else???" I said hopefully. No one moved. I sighed. "Well, what's the point of even knowing this jutsu if my clones won't fight?"

"Fighting is bad. If you went about it the right way, then there would be no need to ever use Kagebunshin no jutsu at all." Pacifist said.

"There's no need for anything." Lazyass, replied, closing her eyes.

"Ok, ok, whatever, I'll just try to not use this too much… is there nothing I can offer you that will make you fight?" I said hopelessly.

"Nope." Said Pacifist and Lazyass.

"Hell, I'll fight anybody!" yelled Psycho.

"Hey, don't you guys think this skirt is sooooo cute???" giggled Ditz.

"Um, you're not wearing a skirt…" I said, rolling my eyes.

"Well, OBVIOUSLY…" she retorted. "I would be if you didn't have such bad fashion sense. I mean, a blue shirt and white shorts? How unoriginal can you get?"

"They're just clothes! How do you expect me to run around in a skirt?! That's the stupidest thing I've ever heard-"

"Peace, peace! I'm sure we can work this out." Pacifist said, intervening again.

"Ok, I'm sick of this. I'm releasing the jutsu now. Bye peoples." I said.

"But-" Psycho began before poofing out, followed by everyone else.

"Ugh… I am NEVER using that again!" I said tiredly at Gaara.

"…" Gaara said. "Ready now?"

"Ok, I'm coming!" I said, regaining my enthusiasm. I took out three kunai and threw them at his face, then darted around the back and threw three more. As they whizzed towards him, the sand poured out in a massive wave and enveloped all of them, forming a huge cloud around Gaara.

'_Ok, time to try it!' _I thought as I started running through the seals. "Katon, Karyuu Endan (Fire Dragon Flame Missile)!"

I took as deep a breath as I could and blew a fire wave at the sand. The extreme heat made my face blister and the surrounding air sizzled as the flame torched its way across the desert sand. Gaara created and hardened a sand wall in front of him milliseconds before the flame hit. A resounding crack split the air and I was blown backwards from the impact, as was Gaara. The wall had been reduced to a heap of molten glass and black scorch marks blazed a trail from where I had been standing to the now gone wall.

"Ugh… note to self: never do that again." I mumbled groggily, pulling myself to my feet. Far away, I could see Gaara doing the same. "Oi, you okay Gaara?" I shouted to him as I walked shakily forward. The miniscule figure nodded and steadily approached as well. We met at Gaara's molten glass/sand.

"Um, can you get new sand?" I asked, grinning nervously. Gaara nodded briefly.

"I didn't expect that, however. All demons seem to be exceeding my expectations lately. Next time, warn me so that I can form the wall sooner. It's lucky I had the armor of sand on." he said calmly.

'_Phew, close one. In the anime, I remember he was talking to his sand like it was his mom or something…glad he got over it. Otherwise I would already be dead. In other news, yatta!! I finally did it! I mastered the Karyuu Endan!' _I thought.

"Ok, but do you think we could go back now? I'm pretty tired…" I said. And indeed, I was. The Karyuu Endan had been used by the 3rd Hokage if I remember correctly, so I seemed to be missing a large chunk of my chakra.

Gaara nodded and we started walking back to his house. By that time it was pretty dark and the stars weren't shining. However, the moon was full and even had a slight reddish tinge to it. _'That's weird…' _I thought. _'I've seen a blue moon but never a red one.'_

Suddenly, Gaara fell over onto the sand, for absolutely no reason at all. "Oi, Gaara? What's wrong?" I said worriedly, kneeling beside him. He had his eyes closed and was limp. Upon closer inspection, I heard him snoring gently. _'What could make you fall asleep?' _I thought, gazing around the deserted alleyways. Something caught my attention in a shadowy doorway as it moved. I squinted closely at it and then stood abruptly.

"I-Itachi…" I didn't notice the words leaving my lips. _'What's he here for?'_

"It's good to see you again, Akima-san." He said, stepping into the moon's feeble light.

I stared at him for a few seconds before a sudden realization hit me like a thunderclap.

"Oh my God! You idiot!"

Itachi's eyebrows shot up. NO ONE called Itachi an idiot. Ever. It was an unwritten rule. However, that was not important to me at that moment.

"You put GAARA, of all people, to sleep! Do you have ANY idea what you've done??? Wake him up, now!"

"I can't." said Itachi, still standing stock-still, trying to recover from the 'idiot' incident. Gaara stirred, and opened his eyes. They were black and yellow.

"Oh shit, run!" I grabbed Itachi's arm and jerked him away, running at full speed. Behind me I could hear Gaara's maniacal laughter start. "You never, ever, ever, put Gaara to sleep! That will wake the Shukaku up!" I hissed at Itachi, who finally seemed to understand.

"That boy is the Shukaku container?" Itachi asked.

"Yeah, and now he's going to go around killing everyone in the village until he wakes up. Did you do some weird hypnosis or something?"

"In a manner of speaking…" Itachi said. "Over this way." Itachi ran into a dark corridor where Kisame awaited.

"We leave now. The Shukaku is here." Itachi said quickly to him.

"Hi Kisame!" I said cheerily. "Hey! You kept my pillowcase! What wonderful, nice, murderers you are!"

"Yo, Akima-san. You carry your own stupid pillowcase now, I'm sick and tired of making Itachi carry it." Kisame handed me my long lost pillowcase.

I took the offered pillowcase happily, then said, "Wait, wait, I'm going with you again? Where to, exactly?"

"Akatsuki." Replied Itachi simply.

"…To do what…" I said suspiciously.

"I don't know." He said, staring impassively.

"I'm guessing this isn't a friendly membership thing."

"You're right."

"…Do I really have a choice?"

Here Kisame let out a chuckle. "Well, you can go willingly, or you can go unwillingly, Akima-san."

I pondered a bit. Either way, I was going. There wasn't the slightest chance that I could get away from Itachi and Kisame, even if I had been at full chakra capacity.

"Why do I have to go?"

Here, Itachi stared at me impassively. Finally he said softly, "Demon containers are rare."

"Oh." I blinked a couple times. Lessee… in the anime, I never watched long enough to know exactly why the Akatsuki wanted the Kyubi demon, only that they did. But since it was a big criminal group, chances were that their intentions weren't nice…

"Hmmm. Unwillingly!" I said grinning. "Kage Bunshin no jutsu!!"

Author's Notes: I know this question will be asked! Why did Akima only find out now about her messed-up kagebunshins? Because… before… her seal hadn't cracked and the demon chakra wasn't affecting her as much. That was a pretty good answer! (Yes, I made it up on the spot. So sue me.)

Ah yes, and to clear up the confuzzled people, I made a nice clean list thingie down there…

Lazyass is the lazy/Shikamaru-ish one.

Psycho is the violent, sadistic one.

Pacifist… is the pacifist one.

Ditz… is the overly-happy ditzy one.

Depressed is the sad, depressed, antisocial one.

Frankly, I don't really think this is a very good chapter… I had a major writer's block and I'm sorry if you didn't like it.

Review Responses:

le otter-chan- Ok, thank you. I put a firecracker in the 8th chapter. Happy now? However… I didn't have any idea how to find strontium or potassium nitrate and stuff, so I just kind of… didn't put in that part. Um… yeah. Thanks for reviewing!

mystic- Akima may not get to Konoha any time soon, but the others will… review again!

TimeReaper- Thank you!

Unita Vis Fortior- Here's an update! Thank you so much!

ReDragon37- w00t, I updated! I can't believe so many people like my story!

Lady Eden Your Gift from Death- Bleah, school work. I have plenty too. I'm sorry about your thumb… TT Good luck with all that school work… Speaking of which, I should probably start mine…

hakia seana- Look look! She reviewed she reviewed! Yay!! Gaaraness will hit the climax in next chapter… might be a little let-down tho… I'm working on that Narutoland problem. Apparently there was a problem with the portal… Thank you and review again!

Dragon Man 180- Yes, yes, I wanted to have lots of goriness and blood in Unagi's death, but I was kinda scared of the PG-13 limit and also, it was supposed to emphasize how powerful Akima/Demon was at that time. More Gaara craziness in the next chapter. Thank you for reviewing!


	8. Maybe Not THAT Impossible

Author's Notes: Hmmmm. Nothing to say. As I write this I have TehRadicalEdward and hakia seana here to… watch all the Naruto animes in one night. It's…11:48 PM. I have a writer's block. Well, actually, I find it hard to write when people are reading over my shoulder. So only the 1st paragraph or so is written with their supervision. The rest I spent weeks and weeks on, getting a sentence an hour. Say buh-bye to updating every Friday peoples, no way I can keep it up. I'll update when I can. Review responses at the bottom… How can you make a fight scene with Itachi? It's impossible, I tell you!!

Maybe Not THAT Impossible

(3rd POV)

"Hmmm. Unwillingly!" she said grinning. "Kage Bunshin no jutsu!!"

Itachi latched on to the real Akima before she could move away and be lost among the other clones. However, she wouldn't have been able to blend in with the others anyway, considering how they were only five of them and they were all kind of standing around and doing nothing.

"Let me go! And will you ATTACK you stupid clones!!" she screamed wriggling around helplessly. Itachi just kept a firm grip on her arms and pulled them behind her back while studying her psychotic clones closely. She ground her heel into his foot. He didn't seem to notice.

"What's with your clones, Akima-san?" Kisame asked, eyeing Psycho apprehensively as she chuckled ominously, licking her lips.

"I smell blood…" Psycho whispered, grinning spookily.

Itachi and Kisame lifted their noses to the air. Akima ceased her hopeless struggling and inhaled deeply. She wrinkled her nose in distaste. "That's probably Gaara's doing…" she said, twisting her head to glare at Itachi.

"It's not MY fault." Itachi said snootily (isn't that an awesome word?? Snoot!) and turned his head away. Akima glowered.

"Since he's probably killing everyone in sight as we speak, and it IS your fault, don't you think you should go and stop him?" she said.

"What for?" Itachi said disinterestedly, turning her away and giving her a little shove forward. "Let's go. Release the kagebunshins, it's not doing you any good."

Akima frowned at her kagebunshins as she obediently poofed them out. "What a waste of chakra… fighting with kagebunshins seemed so easy compared to anything else!" Inside she growled, _'Stupid demon. I can't do anything anymore.'_

Itachi didn't reply and poked her forward again. "You go first so that we can keep an eye on you."

"Feh." Akima jumped up onto a rooftop and looked around. "Which way?"

"Due west," said Itachi, who had somehow silently appeared behind her.

"Which way is wes-" she was cut off by a high-pitched scream from the street below. "Looks like Gaara found someone to play with." She kneeled and peered over the edge to see said demon mercilessly tossing a woman around with newly acquired sand before crushing her into lumps of blood-soaked flesh. It then devoured even these and swirled around aggressively, questing for more. Gaara, no, Shukaku, laughed maniacally.

Akima threw a glance at Itachi. "You can go first." She said. Anything else that she may have wanted to say was cut off by the "eep" she uttered when a sand arm flew up and dragged her off the side of the building.

Itachi decided that a dead Akima may not be able to fulfill the requirements of his plan very well and jumped after her, making two kagebunshins in a flash. One went to Gaara/Shukaku and the other severed the sand arm holding Akima with a kunai, dropping her onto the ground. She ALMOST did the sensible thing and ran, but a sudden memory of a certain large toad's words stalled her. (1)

"Itachi, just land one good blow to wake him up!" she yelled. "I'll distract him long enough to-OOF!" Itachi grabbed her arm and ran. "What do you think you're doing??"

"Fighting here is meaningless." Itachi replied monotonously. "Kisame! Come."

Kisame appeared behind Itachi and started complaining immediately. "You never let me fight, Itachi-san… A demon might actually be a challenge."

"Knowing you, the Shukaku would die and then we couldn't use it later. Besides, at that stage the boy would be no challenge at all. Wait until he falls completely under its control." Itachi said, eyes half-lidded.

"Umm, hello? Shukaku is awake, killing innocents! Gotta save the town!" Akima said, trying to wrestle free of Itachi's grip and digging her feet into the sand to slow down, leaving twin trails of plowed up earth.

"How long will it take you to catch on?" Kisame said, irritated. "We are Akatsuki members. We don't CARE whether innocents are dying or not. Half the time we're the ones killing 'em anyway."

Akima groaned exasperatedly and hooked an arm and a leg around a nearby pole, causing Itachi and her to come to a sudden, and on Akima's part, painful, stop. She said through clenched teeth, "Well I'm not Akatsuki!! Let go!"

Itachi sighed and let her drop to the ground. "Akima-san…" he said softly, eyes closed.

"Whaaaat?" she replied, rubbing her shoulder joints. He opened his eyes slowly.

"We can do this the easy way or the unpleasant way." The cold sentence froze the blood in Akima's veins. "Either you come, _now_, or you come to my world, and when you wake up, it will _not _be a fun journey."

Akima recovered quickly. "Ooh, Tsukuyomi, scary!! I don't give a damn. Go ahead and use it. Torture me LATER, alright?! I have to deal with Gaara _now!_" She got up and tore back to Gaara/Shukaku, leaving Itachi standing there.

'_Oh, I am SO dead… I really pissed him off now…' _Akima thought as she sprinted back to where Gaara had been before, to find… nothing. _'Where would he be?'_

A door was open in one of the houses. '_In there…' _she decided and cautiously poked her head into the interior. Somewhere much further into the inky blackness she heard a shuffling sound. Gulping nervously, she steeled herself and stepped inside on trembling legs. Figuring that it would be pretty dumb to walk around the house in the dark and considering that she had no idea where the light switches were, she decided to see if chakra had light. Raising a finger in front of where she presumed her face was, she attempted to gather chakra there and was surprised to find a little blue flame dancing on her fingertip. Holding it high, she collected more chakra and finally had enough light to see about a yard in front of her. _'Well, onward we go…' _

She walked cautiously down a corridor, carefully peeking into each room to find nothing out of the ordinary. There was a dining room, a kitchen, a bedroom, a bathroom… There was no sign of a struggle, no blood, no bodies… and yet it was still sending chills up her spine. The house was dead silent, emphasis on dead. Gaara's sand could have eaten a hundred people here, and there would be no way to tell.

A soft chuckle filled the darkness, echoing down the hallway, slowly gaining volume and intensity as the seconds passed. Akima cringed as she realized where it emitted from. The door she was standing in front of, of course, at the end of the hallway. She reached out a shaky hand and grasped the doorknob tightly…

"AAAAA!"

Akima struggled to regain her normal breathing rate. "What the hell are you DOING??" she shot at Itachi, who had grabbed her shoulder from behind.

"… I came to check up on you, since you were taking so long." Itachi said, surprised. "Did I scare you?"

"Holy shit YES!! Never ever do that again! I think I might die of a heart attack! Damn!"

"Stop shouting, you will alert the Shuka-" An arm of sand burst through the door and enveloped them both, wrapping around their frames tightly. Itachi simply hung there while Akima struggled fruitlessly, kicking and yelling.

"**Be quiet!!"**

Akima silenced herself and glared downward at Gaara/Shukaku. He (it?) was still in complete human form except for the black and yellow eyes. Both his hands clenched his hair and he stood hunched over and apparently in great pain. Terrible mutterings of death and blood could barely be heard escaping his lips. Then…

"Shut up! Shut up shut up shut up! Go back to sleep!" Gaara/Shukaku suddenly yelled, his eyes suddenly snapping back to turquoise. The sand writhed around him, shaking Akima and Itachi back and forth. Angrily, he tossed them both to the ground, Akima landing on her back and Itachi gracefully alighting on two feet.

Jumping up, Akima stared at the thrashing boy/demon that stood in front of her. _'Think… Naruto got him out of the demon form by headbutting him, but Gaara isn't really in his demon form right now. And the more time we waste, the harder it will be to wake him up when he does change…'_

"Don't tell me that you don't have a plan." Itachi spoke up suddenly, red eyes turning to Akima. "You put up such a fuss that I believed you must have had a way to silence him."

"…well…" Akima said through gritted teeth. "Why don't you think of something? All I know is that when he is in the demon form, you just have to hit him once to wake him up. But right now, he isn't…"

Itachi stared at her for a few seconds. "Well then." He said. Stepping forward, he strolled over to writhing Gaara and studied him curiously. Then, he whacked a fist down on to his head. The sand fell with a dismal flop. Gaara crumpled onto the floor in a heap.

Akima was feeling a little irritated as Itachi turned to smirk at her. "I could've done that," she said, pouting.

Itachi walked past her, obviously feeling pleased with himself. "Come on now, you said you'd come once Shukaku was taken care of."

"Hai, hai…"

With Kakashi and co…

Naruto was deep in thought as he jumped through the trees. _'Akima-san is a demon… just like me… and she just got the first break…' _Naruto recalled when he had first truly felt the power of the Kyubi… The animal ferocity, the bloodthirsty intent, the raw power…

'_We have to find her!'_

"Naruto, look out!" Lee called.

"Eh?" Naruto snapped out of his thoughts in time to see a tree trunk much closer than it should have been.

(WHAM)

"Baka." Sasuke sighed.

Naruto peeled himself off the trunk and leapt at Sasuke, who easily dodged in midair.

"Now, now, conserve your energy, Naruto, Sasuke. We probably have a long and tiring journey ahead of us." Kakashi said with an air of patience.

"Because we have no idea where we are going." Neji added.

"Well, at the moment, we're headed back to Konoha." Said Kakashi.

Naruto stopped. "We are?? I thought we weren't going to go back until we've completed the mission and rescued Akima-san!"

"Well, originally, yes. But since we don't know where she is, and since you guys started randomly running towards Konoha anyway, we might as well stop off there." Kakashi said matter-of-factly.

"But… _Gai _is in Konoha…" Neji said, shuddering slightly. Lee perked up.

"We're going to see Gai-sensei again!" Lee cheered, jumping up and down energetically.

"And a certain pink-haired fangirl is there too." Sasuke said, sighing dejectedly. "I hate pink."

There was a silence. "That was random and out of character, Sasuke." Kakashi said lightly, rubbing the back of his head. "Anyways, we will probably only spend one night there. And who knows, maybe we can find something or someone to aid us. Someone smart. Someone whose name starts with 'S'."

"Nooo, not Sakura!" Sasuke cried in anguish.

"Dumbass, he means Shikamaru." Naruto said, a knowing look on his face. "Sakura cannot handle this kind of mission. Plus, she's injured."

Sasuke uttered an "oh" and the five shinobi continued on their way.

In Konoha Village, Shikamaru looked up at the sky to find it an endless clear blue. Dejectedly, he noticed that there were no clouds. It was so sad. Shikamaru couldn't help but feel that something troublesome would invade his life soon. And, as always, he was right.

With Itachi, Kisame, and Akima

They no longer rushed through the desert at blinding speeds as they had done for the past few hours. Itachi seemed to have finally noticed that Akima couldn't go on for much longer in the blistering heat and sunlight of the desert and had decided to slow their pace to a walk. Tossing her a canteen of water, he decided that this was the perfect time to interrogate her about her knowledge of the Sharingan, especially the Tsukuyomi.

"Akima, about the Tsukuyomi…" Akima choked on the water that she had been pouring down her throat, but managed not to spit it out. When she had finished gulping down the remnants of her mouthful, she screwed the cap back onto the canteen and threw it back at Itachi, who caught it effortlessly.

"Ah, you know, a little trip there doesn't seem that bad right now… as long as you don't make it hot and sunny." Akima said, wiping sweat off her forehead. "But it wouldn't really accomplish anything except to make me tired I suppose, since it would only really take a second or less… Oh yeah, and torturing me would probably hurt a lot and I would experience a mental breakdown and slip into a coma until Tsunade decides to heal me up… But that would never happen because by then you would have taken me to Akatsuki where they will proceed to rip the demon out of my body in some painful way. And then I'll just die, because I won't have any use anymore. The only chance of life for me is to escape, which is impossible with you guys around, so I might as well just kill myself now and save everyone the trouble."

Itachi and Kisame were startled at the change in her. Itachi was the first to react. "Akima, exactly how much do you know about the Tsukuyomi?"

A sad smile graced Akima's face. "It's really nice not to have to think up lies anymore. They get hard to remember after a while. I'm going to die, so what use are my secrets? I know quite a bit about the Tsukuyomi. I know that you are the only person who can use it at this point in time, though your 'foolish little brother' may develop it someday. I know that you have used it on Kakashi, which involved strapping him to a cross and stabbing him with swords. I know that you have used it on Sasuke twice, both of the same thing, you mercilessly slaughtering the Uchiha clan. I know it lasts 72 hours, but in real time lasts less than a second. I know that it causes the victim to go into a mental depression and/or coma. I know that you can easily kill people with it." Akima blinked. "I think that's it."

Itachi stared wordlessly. Even he, the Uchiha genius, was a little freaked out about how much she knew. But he did not let it show, keeping his face emotionless and his voice monotonous. "How did you come about this information?"

"I saw it."

"You can see into people's minds?" Itachi was skeptical about that. It seemed way too far-fetched.

Akima shook her head, smiling gently. "No, no… I watched it. It's too much trouble to explain… just take my word for it."

"Ah." Itachi shut up and started to walk while brooding. _'I'll have to be more careful around her. It seems like she knows so much more than-' _He was interrupted out of his thoughts.

"Hey, since I'm going to die anyway, why don't you tell me why you killed all of the Uchiha clan except Sasuke? And don't give me that crap that you were testing yourself. That sounded so fake. I want the real reason." Itachi stopped again and looked over his shoulder at the inquisitive girl.

"I doubt that the operation will be fatal." He answered carelessly as a way of avoiding the question and continued walking again.

'_Not fatal?' _Akima thought, face settling into a slight frown. _'Oops. Well then, I spilled the beans. I really need to keep my big stupid mouth shut. If they were to discover how much I really knew… Not good. Ok, then… how should I get out of this mess…'_

Akima thought for a good long while, until the sun finally set and the desert had given way to a large forest. It was nearly dusk so the inside was dark and quiet, and moldy things smelled from the undergrowth. Needless to say, Akima was dead tired and probably dehydrated (walking through a desert can do that to you) and just wanted to fall on the floor and lay there for a couple days. However, Itachi and Kisame showed no signs of either stopping or tiring, even with their humongous black cloaks with who-knows-what being carried inside.

Trying to not think about how incredibly nice it would be to sit down, Akima went over her plan one more time.

Step 1: Make a firecracker. (for you, le otter-chan!)

Step 2: Wait until near or in a shinobi village.

Step 3: Set the firecracker off to attract ninja to location.

Step 4: Run!!!!

Step 5: Find some nice ninja that will take me to Konoha.

Step 6: Hide for a couple years.

Step 7: Never mention the past again, make friends, find a job, and all around start a new life.

'_It's really pretty simple…' _Akima thought. _'The hardest part would be getting away from Itachi and Kisame.'_

Suddenly Itachi came to a halt. "We'll rest here tonight." He set down his pack with a thunk. Akima sighed in relief and almost released her hold on consciousness, but didn't quite, though she swayed a little. Kisame took off his sword and leaned it against a tree, then promptly started to gather firewood.

'_Initiate step one.' _She thought, inwardly grinning. "Itachi, do you know what fireworks are?"

Itachi didn't turn around. "No."

"They're pretty cool."

"Mmm." Itachi said disinterestedly.

She wrinkled her nose in aggravation. "Want to see one?"

"Whatever."

"I can make one if I can use some of your stuff…"

"What stuff?" he said, turning around. She smirked.

"Finally got your attention?"

"What stuff?" he repeated.

"Oh, well… coal, copper, iron… a couple explosion notes… and an empty canteen or bottle."

"To be used for what?" he said sharply.

"To make fireworks! I already said that!" she said. _'What's with him?'_

Itachi sighed. "No."

"WHAT?! Why not?" she practically yelled. _'Step one is going badly… if he can't give me the stuff, then how am I going to make it?'_

"Because, Akima-san, there is no reason to."

"…Oh." She shot him a nasty glare and sat down with a thump. "Fine. You're pissed at me, then? What did I do?"

Itachi didn't answer and Kisame stepped into the conversation. "He's just suspicious, Akima-san."

"Ah." She said and mentally chided herself. _'See? SEE? It was stupid to tell him that much! Stupid stupid stupid completely idiotic baka! If you hadn't told him all that stuff about the Tsukuyomi you might have been able to convince him to help you out!'_

Figuring that she might as well start making as much of a firecracker as she could with her own supplies, and maybe steal some of Itachi's stuff later (ha, ya right), Akima shuffled through her pillowcase to find materials. A few minutes of searching later, she came back out with absolutely nothing on her list. Except a very small amount of copper. And that she wasn't really sure about. Flashlights must have some copper in the wiring somewhere, right? Inspecting her flashlight carefully she opened up the battery case and looked at the springs. Nope. And the only way to get further into the flashlight was to break it apart as far as she could see. Out of the corner of her eye she saw Itachi staring. _'Right, he's never seen a flashlight before. Should I shine him with it later? Should I? Should I?'_ Akima contemplated the possibilities. _'Right in the eyes. That'd be funny. And then, maybe, just maybe, he'll forget about being suspicious with me and get interested in it. And then… I could make a trade. Flashlight for… coal, copper… I guess there's iron in my kunai. I'll just use them. Oh yeah, and he has to make some explosion notes… Probably at least 3 high powered ones.'_

Akima watched how Kisame was starting the fire. "Hey Kisame, how come you're doing all the work while Itachi just sits there?" she said, grinning.

"Because he takes the longest watch." Kisame replied without looking up.

"Don't you divide the night in half?"

"No, Itachi takes three quarters of the night and I take the last quarter. In exchange, I have to pay for all the food."

She turned to Itachi. _'So that's why he has those no-sleep lines under his eyes.'_

"Itachi, don't you get paid enough from Akatsuki? Why sacrifice sleep just to save a little money?" she asked, curious.

"I have my reasons." Itachi said coldly, staring at her with a bored expression.

Akima looked up at the sky and figured it was dark enough. She picked up the flashlight and pointed it at Itachi's head.

(click)

"What the-??" Itachi whipped his head away, bringing his hands up to shield his eyes against the blinding light. Akima chuckled and turned off her flashlight with another click.

"What is that thing??" Itachi said, rubbing his eyes sorrowfully. There were dark spots dancing around in his vision.

"I call it…" Here Akima clicked it on again under her chin so that it shone up against her face, giving that scary ghost story look. "…a flashlight!" she smirked and turned it off.

"I see…" Itachi said, blinking rapidly. "Give it here." He reached out a hand. Akima promptly slapped the flashlight into it and settled back, observing his reactions. Itachi looked it over carefully and pressed the button, causing a beam of light to appear. "How does this work? It has no chakra in it." He said, waving the light around to shine it in Akima's eyes.

"Hey! Cut that out! I only kept it in your eyes for a half second or so, and only because you were being a secretive baka." The light was turned off and Akima glared at him fiercely before answering. "It works only for a certain amount of time. The batteries keep it running… once they run out of energy, the whole thing will be useless."

"Ah." Itachi examined it for a few more moments. "I'll trade you something for it." He said. "This could be useful."

She grinned. _'All according to plan.' _"How about coal, copper, explosion notes, and a canteen or bottle?" she said enthusiastically.

A faint smile could be seen on Itachi's face. That is, if one squinted a little and had a big dose of imagination or sake. "Fine." He said and dug through his pack to come up with the required explosion notes and empty canteen. Handing them to her, he drew out a scroll from no where and opened it, pulling out more and more until he found the symbol that he had been looking for. Placing a hand on it, a puff of air exploded and a chunk of coal appeared. He tossed that to Akima and then pulled some more on the scroll so that the paper cascaded into a rather large heap and put his hand upon another mysterious symbol, causing another poof and a chunk of copper to materialize.

Akima watched the process curiously. When she received the copper, she smiled happily. "Thank you! That scroll must be really useful." She barely acknowledged his nod before busying herself with the making of the firecracker.

Well, let's just say that she had completed making the firecracker after a while, because I don't know how one is made, and had fallen into a fitful slumber. Itachi took first watch, sitting with his back against the tree, sharingan deactivated to save energy, until he deemed it was Kisame's turn.

When it was about 8:00 AM Kisame woke everyone and they set out again through the forest, all munching on little ANBU ration bars. Akima thought they were disgustingly sugary, but by lunchtime she was bouncing off the walls (rather, bouncing off the trees) and attempting to run in figure eights around the slower-moving Kisame and Itachi. When Itachi stumbled for the 20th time (almost. We all know Itachi can't stumble.) he grumbled and grabbed her by the back of the collar.

"No more running." He said coldly and glared with his creepy and yet oh-so-cool red eyes to drive the point home. Then he unceremoniously dumped her on the ground. Akima rose grumpily and dusted herself off. She was able to contain her energy for about 5 minutes by glowering at Itachi's uncaring back, then, she cracked.

"ItachiItachiItachi! I'mSOhyperIneedtogetmyenergyoutquickbeforeIEXPLODE!!!" she squeaked and promptly started hopping around.

Itachi sighed in resignation. "Kisame, you deal with it, I'm too tired."

Kisame took off his sword and poked Akima with it. "Hey!" She yelped, feeling her energy drain off. It left her feeling dizzy and weak. "That's… not… cool…" She fell face flat on the ground. Itachi sighed again.

"You didn't actually have to touch her with it."

"Well, I figured with the demon chakra to back her up it would be about right." Kisame replied, strapping his Samehada onto his back again before shaking the gently snoring Akima awake. "C'mon, we still have a ways to go."

"Uh?" she mumbled, before getting up, blearily rubbing at her eyes. The she looked at Kisame. "I feel like shit."

"Well, at least we all learned a valuable lesson from this." Kisame said, straightening up. Itachi grunted in response. "Never give sugar to Akima." He grinned with sharky teeth.

Akima stood in confusion before dismissing it as something irrelevant. The rest of the day she spent in zombie-like mode, mindlessly following Kisame and Itachi's backs without thinking or speaking or even blinking. When evening came, a village came into sight. It was surrounded by a high concrete wall and she could dimly see little blurbs of people standing around on the top.

'_That's… the Akatsuki fortress?'_ she thought tiredly. _'Looks like Konoha to me…' _

They came closer and the guards' faces sharpened. They wore ANBU masks.

'_Well then…' _Akima thought, throwing a sharp glance at the two missing-nin ahead of her. _'What's going on? Why are we here?'_

Author's Notes:

hakia seana and TehRadicalEdward: you guys won't get this… Should I explain it to you?? Naw…

Ahh, gomen for the Sakura-bashing… I couldn't help it. Seeing her makes me want to rip her hair out. Painfully. With much blood. I'm not deranged. Just… a little… psychotic. Which is not the same thing at all. However, I do realize that some people actually like Sakura (shudder) so I will try to refrain from Sakura-bashing so that those people won't hate me. Too much.

Review peoples!! I give you free chapters if you review! Pleez? I didn't get very many for the last chapter… sniffles I know it sucked… but… review anyway?? And…. waaaaaaah! Dragon Man 180 didn't review last chapter… and he has been reviewing each chapter from the very start!! Did it really suck so bad??

TehRadicalEdward- I'm disappointed in you Dana! You didn't review chapter 7! Go do it right now! That is, unless you already did. Shika will come… and Gaara tried to kill me so our non-existent in the first place relationship is OVER. And Sasuke… well, you don't understand his little power obsession cuz I didn't let you watch it (yet) because it's important and what not blah blah blah. Dana violence! Itachi rocks.

Oh wait. You asked a question. Why is Akima transforming? …cuz…

Wait again! When Monika and I find out how to get to Narutoland, we will definitely take you with us. That's a given!

Magicians of the Yami- You found the 5 me's funny? Wow! I didn't think anyone would! I actually considered that last chapter pretty sucky… but thank you! (happiness)

A purple otter- I'm sorry!! I know I said last chapter that the fireworks would be in this one, but they're in the next one!! That's because this one had already gotten pretty long, even though there was basically nothing happening yet… but at least she made it. And I went to a lot of trouble through that too! See, I had to think of a reason for her to make fireworks and everything. But, next chapter will make you happy, yes?

Yay for Neji obsession! Neji is awesome… but not as awesome as certain other people… (coffItachicoff)

hakia seana- …don't know how to spell your name? Well remember! NOW! ehhh… multi personalities seem weird, don't know where I'm going with that. Weirdness. BUT, I did post today, just like I said I would. And next next Friday I will post again (maybe). W00t for everyone! Oh yeah, I know you will be mad at me for the Itachi smack Gaara falls thing. But, I couldn't really think of anything else, and Gaara does just sit there while the sand does all the blocking for him. Itachi is just too darn fast! Cuz he's cool. No killing of certain overworked and underappreciated writers. I worked so hard on this story and yet I only got 4 reviews for this one!! (sob uncontrollably)


	9. Explosion

Disclaimer: It's so strange… I read fanfics basically every day, and yet I didn't remember until now that I'm supposed to say I don't own Naruto. Itachi is mine tho… (in my super messed-up crazy psychotic completely and totally obsessed mind only… and in a couple of my friends' too. Mine!) Oh yeah, this applies to all the chapters before and after this one. Cuz I'm bound to forget again and I'm too lazy to change the others.

Umm, sorry for the long descriptions of people's days… I kinda… couldn't think of anything… But look! Fireworks!! In the title too!! Gasp! I updated early… by a single day… since tomorrow is Christmas Eve I won't have any time for myself to check this over and post it. So be happy. I guess.

Explosion

"Home! Home! I'm hooooooome!!" Naruto screamed as he crossed the threshold of the Konoha gates, beaming at everyone exuberantly. His teammates kept their faces politely unemotional and tried to ignore all the shocked glances and glares sent their way. Actually, it was more likely that the glares were directed at our little fox demon, not the proud survivor of the Uchiha Clan or the all-powerful Hyuuga Branch House Member. In fact, people would even bow their heads in respect to the great Uchiha Sasuke and then turn around to throw banana peels at poor innocent Naruto. But this was the way life was, and Naruto had come to ignore the negative energies that always sprouted into life whenever he was around. But SOMEDAY, they would all bow their heads in respect to Naruto, the great Hokage, and throw banana peels at Sasuke. Or maybe not.

Anyways, Kakashi said they could have the day to themselves, but to assemble at 7:00 PM at the Konoha Wall's Western Gate. Everyone made sure to go and enjoy themselves to prepare for the next journey. Well, except for Sasuke and Neji. The word 'fun' isn't even in their vocabulary.

Naruto chose to go and visit the pink-haired girl in the hospital, where she had almost made a full recovery.

"Sakura-chan? Are you feeling better now?"

"Is Sasuke-kun here?"

"Well, he's back, but he's not with me."

"Why not?!"

"He went off to do something else."

"Naruto-baka! Why the hell didn't you bring him here?? Go away, he's probably shy and won't come until you leave! Go on, shoo!"

"But…"

"I SAID NOW, IDIOT!!!"

And so it was that poor Naruto scampered out of the hospital, feeling heartbroken. _'As soon as I came in, the first words out of her mouth were about stupid Sasuke. Everything is about the great Sasuke...' _Naruto went on brooding for quite a while and then decided to go see Iruka-sensei.

"Naruto! You're back! I kept your apartment clean for you, like you asked. In fact, I had to clean it up after your last bout with the microwave. What happened in there??"

"Ahh, well… I was in a hurry that day and I was trying to save time by heating up my ramen first and then going to take a shower… but I set the time wrong and it… well… it exploded." Naruto rubbed the back of his head, grinning. "It was such a waste of good ramen."

Iruka did his best to look stern and reproving, but the guilty look on Naruto's face was too much. He burst out laughing and smacked his hand down on his favorite student's head, messing up his already messed-up hair. "Oh Naruto… do you want to make up for that waste of ramen tonight?"

Naruto's eyes snapped open and he bounded on his teacher, hugging him fiercely. "Thank you so much, Iruka-sensei!"

Iruka chuckled and disentangled himself from the little ball of energy before smirking. "Your treat…"

"WHAT??"

With Sasuke

Sasuke went home and looked around. Nothing had changed. The book he had been reading before he left was still on the table, his clothes were still in the laundry basket, ready to be put away, the dishes were all sitting neatly in their cabinets…

'_Well, of course, did you really expect anything to change while you were gone? No one else lives here anymore.'_

Sasuke let out a sigh of malcontent and went to take a shower. When he was done he changed into a new set of the exact same clothes he had been wearing before and washed the old ones before folding them neatly and placing them back into his backpack. It was now 12:00.

He prepared himself a sandwich and drank some orange juice while studying a list of jutsus. 12:30.

He checked over his weapons for nicks or rust and coated them all with anti-stain polish. 1:00.

He cleaned his already spotless room. 1:30.

He dusted the shelves, cleaned the toilet and shower, replaced a couple burned out light bulbs, mopped the floors, vacuumed the carpets, shook out the rugs, sprayed the ants in the kitchen and took out the garbage. 3:30.

He brooded about killing his brother. 4:00

He checked over his bank account, looking for errors. It was dwindling slightly, even though it was supported by the many private donations that seemed to be given every once in a while. One donor stood out the most. The first time he had been given money from this anonymous guy he had never met, he had been suspicious. It came with a scribbled note that said, 'I'm sorry.' Most likely, that was talking about the Uchiha Clan Massacre. The guy was probably some goody-goody Samaritan who thought he was helping out the poor Uchiha orphan. Each year, on Sasuke's birthday, he would receive another bundle of money and some other gift, including special exploding shuriken and other countries' jutsu scrolls. Whoever this guy was, he did a lot of traveling, because Sasuke had received gifts from EVERYWHERE. How he figured out Sasuke's birthday he didn't know, but it really shouldn't be that hard since three quarters of the girls in town knew. Still, Sasuke often thought that he owed this weird guy a lot, since he was barely able to pay the bills even with his help. 5:00.

He ate dinner. 5:30.

He brooded again. 6:00

He studied. 6:30.

He started brooding again, but was sharply startled out of his thoughts by a little alarm clock that read 6:45 PM. Time to go. Sasuke turned out all the lights, locked the door, and set off towards the Western Gate. What an eventful and exciting day he had. Let's look at Neji's day.

Neji walked down the streets of Konoha with his head held high, overlooking the masses of ignorant people that swarmed around, doing their little petty errands. Like ants to the great prodigy. He ignored all of them. Except one.

"N-N-Neji-n-nii-san…" Hinata started timidly.

"Hinata-sama." Neji replied coldy, doing his absolute best to mask his fury and failing horribly.

There was an uncomfortable silence.

"H-how d-did your mission g-go?" she finally asked, evidently believing it would be a safe topic.

"I was assigned a different mission that has not been completed yet, and will be leaving tonight at 7:00."

"Oh…" Hinata did not know whether to say she was sorry or she was glad. If she said she was sorry, it may seem like she was sorry about him getting a new mission, while if she said she was glad, it may seem like she was glad about him leaving again. Either way was dangerous.

There was another uncomfortable silence.

"W-well… I have to go n-now, but I w-wish you good l-luck on your mission…" Hinata managed to stammer out.

"Thank you for the thought, Hinata-sama."

Hinata whispered something incomprehensible, eyes downcast, before giving a tiny bow and turning away on shaky legs. Neji did not bow before he swiveled around to face his former destination. Neji likes to brood too.

Now, Rock Lee is the complete opposite of Neji. In English terms that would be a 'foil' character. (Agh!! School burns the creative side of my brain!) Anyways, Lee believes in hard work, while Neji believes in… genius stuff. Lee likes 'you make your own destiny', Neji likes 'fate'. Lee is ugly, Neji is… not. Lee is loud. Neji is quiet. Lee is a good guy. Neji is practically evil (well, not anymore). However, Lee and Neji do share a few things in common. For example, they both have weird and slightly scary eyes and are both determined to become great ninja. (and the author thinks that they both kick ass)

But that's not the point. We're here to talk about Lee's day, not to compare and contrast Neji and Lee. So, Lee trained all day. He kicked a log until his feet bled, then ran a couple hundred laps (just as a little cool-down) and then hung out with Gai-sensei, calling out very strange phrases at random people like "Youth power!" and "You are in the springtime of your life, don't waste it!" and stuff. Then, Lee practiced his (flash grin sparkle sparkle) with Gai until his gums started to bleed from all the teeth-polishing. And then, sadly enough, it was 7:00 and he had to leave with a tearful goodbye to his favorite sensei.

Kakashi had gone to the Hokage's office straight away after leaving his students. He had to request a certain soon-to-be chuunin to be on his team. In her office, Tsunade had a migraine.

"AAGH!!" Kakashi narrowly ducked a flying chair, wincing as it cracked the wall behind him.

"Now, now, Hokage-sama…"

"SHUT UP!!"

"Yelling will only make you headache worse…" Kakashi soothed, bringing his hands up to block any more attacks that may come his way.

"I KNOW!" she shrieked, punching her desk, causing it to crack into 2 halves neatly.

"I just need one little paper to be signed by you and then I'll leave you be… and I'll tell your guards that you need the rest of the day off to relax…"

Tsunade thought about it for a second, the strain evident in the vein popping out of her forehead. "Fine. Give it."

Kakashi hesitantly handed her a paper and a pen before they were both snatched away. The paper came back with a slight rip and a scribbled signature at the bottom. The pen came back in pieces. Kakashi sighed lightly as the ink soaked into his gloves and stained his fingers. "Thank you, Hokage-sama."

A grunt was heard in response as Tsunade flopped into a nearby backup chair and promptly fell asleep. Kakashi chuckled and closed the door quietly, informing the guards that the Hokage was not to be disturbed. Then he stared at the paper before strolling off to find a certain lazy shinobi. The paper's title was: Congratulations, You Have Been Promoted to Chuunin Level!

Shikamaru had been having a good day. He had woken up at noon, taken a shower, eaten, and had been staring at the clouds when he was interrupted by Kakashi.

"Shikamaru, I now officially promote you to chuunin level."

"Huh?"

"And now you are to join Uzumaki Naruto, Uchiha Sasuke, Hyuuga Neji, Rock Lee, and me, Hatake Kakashi, on a long-term search-and-rescue mission outside of Konoha. Be at the Western Gate at 7:00. You should start packing and saying your goodbyes now." And with a little puff of smoke, Kakashi disappeared.

Shikamaru gazed up at the still cloudless sky. Life was just so troublesome. Actually try a little once, and then they expect you to do more. Why had he gone and made himself look good in that one match? Why? See what happened?

At 7:00 all the Genin had assembled at the Western Gate, packed and ready to go. And for once, all were quiet. Naruto wasn't even glaring at anyone. Everybody had their own individual thoughts on their departure, and were brooding about one thing or another. At 8:00, Shikamaru showed up with a muttered "hi" and an expression that showed his disappointment that they were still here and had not left him behind. At 9:00, Kakashi showed up, book in hand. But no one yelled at him for being two hours late.

Kakashi was a little worried about his students' behavior, but dismissed it as anxiety over the upcoming mission and decided on a pep talk.

"Alright, each of you have been specially handpicked to go on this mission. That means that you each have something special that will aid the team. As most of you know, our mission is to track down and rescue a girl by the name of Akima who may be being pursued by two S-class criminals named Uchiha Itachi and Hoshigaki Kisame. This girl is a demon container, so she is very powerful and it would not be wise to make her angry in any way. However, she appears to be friendly and she knows most of the members of our group already, so trust should not be a very big issue. However, the criminals that may be after her or have already kidnapped her are extremely dangerous and it is my wish that we do not engage them in battle, as we would most likely lose. Therefore, if we make contact, keep your mouths shut and let me do the talking. If we're lucky, we can pull this off without any bloodshed. Once we have rescued Akima-san, we will retreat to the safety of Konoha as quickly as is possible. Understood?"

'_Geez, another woman?' _Shikamaru thought lazily. "Does the Hokage really approve of a group of genins, one newly-appointed chuunin and one jounin taking on two missing-nins?"

"No, I didn't tell her of the mission. There is no need for her to worry about something she can do nothing about. All the jounin are on missions, she and the ANBU are needed to protect and govern Konoha, and we have the ablest group of genins and one chuunin with us already." Kakashi said lazily. "Any more questions?"

The group was silent. "Ok, then let's go."

With Akima, Itachi, and Kisame

"Oi, why are we going to Konoha??" Akima tugged on Itachi's sleeve, temporarily regaining her energy and earning a Sharingan glare from him. "Ah, sorry, no touch Akatsuki cloak?" she said, immediately freeing the black cloth and waving her hands apologetically.

"We aren't going to Konoha; we will merely be passing by it." Itachi said.

"Oh." Akima sank back into zombie mode, her interest dispelled, or so it seemed. _'Lucky lucky! This is the perfect chance to escape!' _She eyed the sky, calculating how long it would be until sundown. At least another hour… it was barely dusk, and for the fireworks to have full effect it would have to be nighttime. They would contrast more sharply with their bright lights against the dark.

Suddenly, Itachi veered off the main road into the bushes. "We will not spend the night in Konoha, because that would be too dangerous. So, you and Kisame will wait here for the time being while I go and get some supplies." He turned to leave.

"Ah, wait!" Akima cried out on impulse. "When you last visited here, you were attacked. Don't you think they'll be looking out for you now?"

"Genjutsu." Itachi said simply and poofed into a teenager that looked a little like Killua from Hunter X Hunter except with short black hair and green eyes. He was approximately the height of Sasuke and had the I-don't-care-about-anything Uchiha air about him. No matter how he tried to hide it, the glint of coldness in the eyes of Itachi could not be erased completely and lived on in the eyes of the boy. The illusion-disguised Itachi walked off with a bewildered Akima staring confusedly after him. She pointed a finger and turned to Kisame for an explanation.

"Why… a Sasuke-like kid?"

"Children are less suspicious to the Konoha guards and are perceived as harmless. And he's like his brother because that's the way Itachi is, too." Kisame replied offhandedly before slumping onto the ground. "Every time we come near Konoha, Itachi has to get the supplies. Or he finds some other errand to run, or he slips off in the middle of the night. Someway or another, he finds a way to get inside that village. What he does in there, I don't know… I would expect it to be something like stealing the Hokage's forbidden jutsu scrolls or something, but if he ever has, he hasn't shown me, and I've never asked."

"I see… Now, since Itachi's gone, tell me what he needs to save up money for that he doesn't get enough sleep at night." She said smirking slightly. _'Curiosity… overwhelming…Sense of judgment… depleted…'_

"Dunno." Kisame replied boredly. "How come you want to know everything about Itachi and not me?"

"Because he's more mysterious. But sure, I'll interrogate you about yourself then. What was your connection with Momochi Zabuza, and what did the Seven Shinobi-gatana of the Mist do? And why did you quit, if you really did at all?"

Kisame was silent for a moment. Then he announced, "I changed my mind. Ask me about something else."

Akima laughed and grinned cheerily at the sharky guy. "Fine. Do you like sushi?"

With disguised Itachi

Itachi the Sasuke look-alike with green eyes and black hair was admitted into the village without much trouble, considering his genjutsu-created passports were all in order and he didn't seem to be carrying any weapons. Once he stepped past the threshold, girls like Sakura and (cough) OTHER people flocked around and immediately formed little gossiping groups. One after another, they proclaimed him to be their second true love (after Sasuke, of course, and only because they didn't know yet how absolutely awesome his attitude and ninja skills were). Itachi adopted a small slouch and shoved his hands into his pockets, pointedly ignoring the drooling fangirls.

After a few minutes of walking, he ran across a small group of jounins (meaning Asuma, Kurenai, Gai, and Anko) and they didn't even notice the boy, so great Itachi's skill was.

However, he wished he had masked his presence from everyone, as he now found himself being stalked by a small group of pink-haired kuniochi (they bring shame upon the name).

After buying a couple essential supplies (food, water, etc.) he decided to leave quickly through the West Gate in order to be rid of his stalkers as soon as possible. Breaking into a sprint, he felt them speed up as well. Not wanting to go at a speed that would be too suspicious for a kid, he only increased his speed to about Lee's level without weights. As a result of this, he left the stalkers far behind, but was unable to stop in time to avoid a group of genins, one chuunin, and a jounin teacher that happened to be standing around the West Gate.

Itachi had the finesse to not smack headfirst into someone; rather, he spun aside at the last second to brake with his sandals dragging through the dirt for a yard or so. Heads snapped up in surprise to stare at him.

'_Ah…' _ It just had to be them. That little group of people who had stood up to him when he had first come after the Kyubi and discovered Akima instead. But the Kyubi had been killed…so why was he staring at the Kyubi container? _'Oh well… he is still being protected, so taking Akima-san would be easier since she is still in Kisame's custody…' _And then… Copy Ninja Kakashi… with the Sharingan eye that was supposed to only belong to the Uchiha Clan, he was barely a joke. And of course, his foolish little brother, Sasuke. Itachi was very glad that his genjutsu skills were top-notch. The other people didn't matter, as far as he was concerned. A slouching kid with brown hair in a bushy ponytail and a lazy expression caught his attention, as he had not seen him the last time he had run into this particular group.

"Oi, oi!" Naruto was the first to speak up. "You're really fast! Sugoi! And… you look a lot like…" Naruto turned to look at Sasuke, then back again. Itachi merely stared coldly, then acknowledged the boy with a slight nod. Sasuke narrowed his eyes and activated his Sharingan.

The red eyes gained Itachi's attention at once and he almost activated his own on instinct. But, he caught himself just barely and pointedly avoided looking into his little brother's eyes. He wasn't sure how far Sasuke had progressed with the Sharingan's ability of insight, but he didn't want to risk his illusion being seen through, however unlikely that was.

However, Sasuke didn't have the slightest idea that the teen was actually his older brother in disguise. What he had used the Sharingan for was to measure the new arrival's power and skills, and was frankly quite impressed. (Itachi had the sense to disguise his chakra levels and all that, but he still left them high enough to let people know he was no push-over). This had rather drastic effects…

"Fight with me." It had to be Sasuke's almost favorite line. He's always wanting to fight with all the strong people in the world and then getting his ass kicked badly, and then he goes into his inferiority complex blah blah blah. Itachi didn't really want to test the strength of his little brother right now… he could still see that he was too weak.

"Not interested." Itachi said. When Sasuke failed to reply, he judged the conversation over and turned to go through the gate.

"You aren't from around here…" Neji said carefully, the veins around his eyes threatening to pop up out of his skin. He wanted to use the Byakugan to judge this boy's strength, but knew it would seem like a hostile action. As for Sasuke, he had no communication skills, so he said what he wanted straight out and didn't care whether the boy would take offense. Thankfully, Itachi did not.

Itachi didn't turn around, but continued walking. "You are correct."

Now, at that point, Itachi might have gotten clean away, as no one, not even Kakashi, could detect any real hostility being emitted from him. Sasuke was willing to let him leave as the boy didn't even have any apparent weapons to fight him with and frankly, he wasn't even sure if he was a proper ninja or not, even with the high chakra levels. However, Itachi had been delayed long enough for certain stalkers to finally catch up.

"Sasuke-kuuuuuuun!" a voice screeched, cutting through the air like a knife through one's pink hair. Sasuke started and tried to make a run for it but was knocked over by Naruto, who suddenly started running in slow motion towards Sakura, arms outstretched.

In slow motion, the ditzy features of Sakura's face changed from drooling fangirl to a disgusted, wrinkled mass of popping nerves.

In slow motion, her hand formed a fist… Naruto's face changed from enthusiastic to shocked, then to afraid… the second before the fist connected with his face, his eyes clenched shut and he tried to draw back… but…

(WHAM)

There was a rush of air as time returned to its normal flow. Naruto lay in a heap on the ground, twitching slightly. Sakura 'humphed' and pasted her stupid smile back on as she tried to glomp Sasuke. He, of course, pushed her off roughly and turned back to where Itachi had been.

Itachi had wisely snuck off quietly while all the commotion had been going on.

'_Darn.' _Sasuke thought, ignoring Sakura's blabbering about how her day had been and what new kind of make-up she had put on this morning and didn't it look pretty and blah blah blah… he tuned the rest out.

"Oh Sasuke-kun, are you leaving already??" she squeaked and he wanted to throttle her until she was dead, but he satisfied himself with a glare of acknowledgement. If such a thing does exist. Which I think it does.

"Well…" Kakashi said slowly. "I guess we should get going now."

Shikamaru gazed at the entrance. "That boy… he gave me a funny feeling."

"A bad feeling?" Lee asked, interested.

Shikamaru merely cocked his head to one side. "… never mind. Too troublesome."

Naruto shrugged and strolled sedately out the gate, bruises disappearing slowly to the amusement of his teacher.

With Itachi, Kisame, and Akima

"We should change locations." Itachi said, reverting to his normal form upon returning to the campsite, where he found Akima and Kisame in a heated argument about sushi.

"It's so gross! And expensive too!" Akima shouted, gesticulating wildly.

"What are you talking about?! It's the best food in the world! I eat it all the time!" Kisame roared back.

"Ahem." Itachi coughed, gaining their attention. "We should change locations."

"What for?" Akima snapped grumpily.

"Some Konoha ninjas will be leaving out of the West Gate shortly, and we are virtually unprotected out here in the open."

"…Is that so?" Akima said slowly.

Itachi turned to her as she began shuffling through her pillowcase, pulling out the very ugly, lopsided firework that she had created. Setting it carefully on the ground, she began to form handseals. Itachi suddenly realized what she was doing and dived to stop her. But…

"Goukakyuu no jutsu!" (Blazing Fireball Technique)

She blew flames onto the firework. Luckily, the main part of it was a plastic canteen, so it didn't catch fire straight away. Instead, the bundle of explosion notes on the bottom began to crisp on the edges. Itachi stared, aghast as the thing that she had worked so hard on burst into flames. Then he turned around, bewildered as to why she would destroy it without a thought.

Akima was sprinting as fast as she could towards the West Gate. With a sudden realization, Itachi sped after her. He would have caught up in a matter of seconds had he not been distracted once more.

There was a horrible, squealing screech emitted from behind him as the firework burst open, sparks flying high in a stream of blue and silver lights. A sooty smoke filled the area, making Itachi's eyes burn to look back at it and hard to breathe. The firework let out another bloodcurdling screech, this time rising higher and higher, as if some creature was burning in anguish. With a start, he noticed that the sparks had risen to the dry and cracked leaves of the trees and they had caught fire and were falling like little shooting stars. They rained down onto the forest floor where other leaves and twigs swiftly became infected with the spreading wild fire. In almost no time at all, the trees were burning. Kisame started using water jutsu after water jutsu, but while succeeding in the beginning, he was unable to draw anymore water from the dry air around him and snatched up their belongings before they were burned up before vacating quickly. He conveniently forgot Akima's pillowcase, leaving it to be consumed by the flames.

"Itachi-san! Get Akima!" Kisame shouted, hurriedly brushing off glowing embers from his cloak and patting furiously at the hem where small flames could be seen. Itachi snapped out of his daze and rushed even faster than before after Akima.

With Kakashi and co.

Everyone froze as the unearthly screech cut through the darkness. In the forest, a bright glow could be seen as the trees blazed ferociously. Kakashi's visible eye narrowed as he spied the water waves being summoned, one after another to quench the flames but to no avail. With a hasty word to his students, he jumped towards the burning clearing. _'Many shinobi could cause a fire, but not very many could summon so much water in a dry environment…' _he thought, impressed. As another shriek sounded, he winced. _'What kind of animal could make a cry like that?'_

Neji was the first to spy the rapidly moving person rushing towards them. "Sensei, someone is coming." He said calmly, prepping his defense should they be hostile.

Kakashi nodded, motioning everyone to stop. Then he froze as a thoroughly disheveled, very scared, and very out of breath Akima came into view. She landed heavily on the tree in front of them and managed to gasp out one word. "…run…" before pushing off again. Jerking her head towards the West Gate of Konoha, she started to jump again.

Itachi slammed into her at top speed, knocking her to the ground with a yelp of surprise and pinning her arms behind her back. "You…" he said, "are a lot of trouble to look after." She gave a groan in response.

'_Mission failed…' _she thought miserably, tasting blood from where she had bit her tongue.

Author's Notes: Ta da! Another chappie! You like, yes? Review please! If you review enough, I might be so inspired I get the next chapter out early! And I am VERY pleased with my reviews this time!!! In particular to Little Fox Kit, who reviewed so much!! It really boosted my ratings, maybe other people will look at my review stats now and actually think it's good! Yay! In other news, did my firework description go okay? I realized after I wrote it that le otter-chan (now A purple otter) may have wanted for me to do the kind where they go up in the air and explode with a big bang… but I was thinking of the kind where they stay on the ground and a huge stream of sparks shoot out and make a lot of noise… is… that… okay? (hides from A purple otter)

Dragon Man 180- Whee! Yes, I was a little hyper myself when I wrote that part with Hyper Akima… sugar rules!! Um, about Kiba and Akamaru, I didn't really think of that… " However!! I thought of a reason WHY they didn't come (after I wrote this chapter, of course) and it's in chapter 10. Thank you and come again!

Nakashima-Michiyo- Yay!! I LUV new reviewers!! Thank you, I feel loved… Ya, Akima is kind of sort of based of me but kind of not… however, I like blood… " And yes, Itachi is so awesome… Everyone knows that!!

Magicians of the Yami- Hehe, I almost always leave cliffies… it's so that people will always want more, and then they have to review!! Mwahahaha, the cycle will never end! (cough) So, anyways… Neji and Itachi rule!! They rule muchly. Haha, sugar is what keeps me ALIVE enough to write this after all my homework… Luv it…

Little Fox Kit- Um, I'm writing, I'm writing!! I'm just a little slow… I update every other Friday now because I don't have enough time to do this and all of my homework! (sob) I'm sorry for not updating sooner, please forgive me! I really am trying! And please review again! Thank you so much for your kindness! (I feel cheesy now… :P) But I really do mean it!

A purple otter- Fireworks!!! Look!! Um, hopefully you read the end author's note… Hehehe… the more I think about it, the more I'm sure that you wanted the other kind of firework… Is it still ok, or do I need to die in a horrible pit of flames? Thank you and review again!

KumoKunoichi- Thank you! You've just inspired me to go on a writing spree! (writewritewrite) Um, it's not really in the 1st person anymore. I stopped doing that because I was afraid too many of MY traits were going into her personality and it needed to stop before it became a self-insert… (sigh) Yes, I know she's Mary-Sueish, and I'm glad she's not the worst you've come across, but I really don't want her to be Mary Sue at all!! But, the problem is, I don't know how to fix it… At least I'm not having her beat up Itachi or something (Gasp, I could never do that to Itachi!!) but I still believe she should have some more… un-Mary Sue ish stuffs. Sarcasm is great! Really! I agree with that completely. Ehehe, Akima know how to make fireworks simply because A purple otter (other reviewer) bugged me about it a lot… and so I decided to just stuff it in there. Um, but sure, she learned in chem class.

hakia seana- It's not REALLY Gaara-bashing… My brother influenced me to do a little making fun of Gaara… Cuz, if you think about it, all Gaara does is stand there while his mom/sand does all the work… To make you feel better, we can just say that Itachi was SO fast that he could run up there and smack poor Gaara down before he could react properly. Ahhh, I MIGHT bring Gaara back… MAYBE. If I can think of a way how to… Shika-kun is finally in, and Dana hasn't reviewed in a while… (sob) maybe she doesn't like reading it…

Btw, anything and everything reminds me of Itachi because he's always on my mind… ALWAYS. During math tests, during the SAT (yes, even then, and it was horrible… especially when you're trying to concentrate) and when I sleep, Itachi is there… Am I obsessed? No… of course not! What ever made you think that?

Rythmic- Mmm, I thought that there must be SOME people out there who like Sakura, because I see lots of fanfics about her… and I originally wanted to just let her fade out of the storyline… but… my hatred for her spilled over… and you can see the result. BUT, since you have no problems with Sakura-bashing, I'm happy! After this chapter, I'm pretty sure that Sakura will disappear…

About AkimaxNaruto or AkimaxSasuke… hmmm… I'm not really sure how to do a Sasuke relationship because I'm a little pissed at him and his power obsession thingie right now (he's still awesome) and I really don't think it will work out too well… Naruto MIGHT work, especially in the next chapter… but if I do any pairings at all it will probably with Itachi. Akima is 16… I think the main Naruto cast is around 13 or something, aren't they? And I think Itachi is around 17 or 18… I'll consider Sasuke though… Thank you for reviewing!


	10. Caught Again The Chase Begins!

Um… this chapter is cheesy… and I couldn't think of a name for it…so…yeah…

Anyways! I want to give a congrats to one of my reviewers, Nakashima-Michiyo, because it was her birthday and she still reviewed!!! (cries with happiness) HAPPY BIRTHDAY!!!! And review again!

Review Responses:

Dragon Man 180- Ah well… I kind of imagine Itachi to be a little arrogant, so he wouldn't care about such 'weaklings' as a couple low-level ninja… And the problem with having a whole village to back them up is that Kakashi never told Tsunade about this mission at all… hm, that could cause trouble later on! And I have a kind of sort of Neji v. Sasuke fight in ch.11, so you can look forward to that. Pretty short, tho.

TehRadicalEdward- Um, already explained the Anbu thing, so you don't need to hear that again… do you? Whee, I love sakura-bashing too! Mwahaha, I can't stop doing it… so she will kind of fade out… I might bring her back to be an innocent bystander for itachi to kill… or maybe akima can do it when she goes on a demon rampage… I spoil nothing!

Wadever- Ok, but make sure to vote again at the bottom… and if you don't I'll count it anyways… but I would appreciate it if you voted again because it would make tallying the scores easier! Thanks for reviewing!

Little Fox Kit- No, feel free to be as cheesy as you wish… this chapter is cheesy too… Yes, everyone is pretty much just standing right there when Itachi tackles Akima… Eh, when I wrote the firecracker scene I was trying to recall all the senses of when I saw a firecracker go off… maybe it was just that one but it did hiss and pop and squeal a lot… I dunno…

Nakashima-Michiyo- READ MY A/N!! (cough) But I'll say it again anyway… Happy Birthday! A couple weeks late, but whatever. It's the thought that counts, right? Um, however, your wishes about pairing Akima with Itachi… I have to leave that up to all my reviewers at a vote at the bottom. Sorry! But feel free to vote (and review) again! Also…Ah ha!! Not 13 and reading PG-13 material! (scold scold scold) I mean, I would NEVER wander into the R-rated section when I'm only 15… (sarcasm, BIG-TIME) ugh, but some of the stuff in there is NASTY… be careful…

pink-kitty- Um, I don't want to give her freakish strength (that does sound funny, maybe once in a while) or a sharingan… for reasons like so: she would be too Mary-Sue, and having the sharingan would make her somehow related to Itachi and then I would have to explain how she escaped the massacre and all that, and plus there could be no AkimaXItachi then because it would be incest and that's icky. That was a long sentence. Thank you and review again!

A purple otter- I'm sorry!! I knew I picked the wrong kind of firework! I knew it, I knew it!! Oh, in the chapter after this one, I give Neji a bit of someone's ass-kicking to do… you like, yes? Look forward to it!

Hellblazer- Well, to find out what happens next, you could always read! Sorry, the big bad fight scene is in the next chapter… this one is just a filler, pretty much. The quiet before the storm (or whatever...). Thank you and review again!

Rythmic- I'm glad you loved it! (feels warm and fuzzy inside…) Ah yes, about pairings, I have a vote at the bottom for that, so feel free to send me your opinion(s) about that. We'll have it figured out by the next chappie. Thank you and review again!

hakia seana- Agh, you spoke of hw in your review! For shame! XD Anyways, no Sam's brother bashing. He is the reason I am the proud owner of a Kakashi keychain and magnet, plus 3 kunai and a slashed Konoha forehead protector. AND, it wasn't REALLY Gaara-bashing… and Gaara will come back someday, you know…

XoXSilverDragonXoX- GASP, another person liked my story and thought it was funny??? (dies of shock and happiness) Thank you!! YOU, of all people, want more Itachi? Isn't that my job to be bothering you about him?? Hmmm… but there's plenty of Itachi! (Actually, that's not true, one can never get enough Itachi) Happy Late New Year! You update your story too!

Storytime everyone! Gather round! And I'm sorry that this chapter is short and pointless… It's a filler chapter before all the big stuff happens… (whisper: did you know I haven't started on my main plot yet?)

Caught Again… The Chase Begins!

Kakashi stared as Itachi pulled Akima to her feet, firmly holding her hands behind her back. Pulling up his forehead protector to reveal his one Sharingan eye, he decided to gain Itachi's attention. However, he never got the chance.

"Uchiha Itachi, I _will _kill you!"

Itachi ignored his brother as he summoned up some chakra strings, tying Akima's begrudging hands behind her back as she struggled helplessly. Sasuke snarled and charged up his chidori as he ran towards his aniki. Itachi merely stared before grabbing Akima's shoulders and placing her in front of him.

For a moment, it seemed as if Sasuke was going to keep on going regardless if he was going to kill someone else along with his brother. In some small part of his mind, he knew that he could stab through Akima and possibly catch Itachi off guard, finally fulfilling his ambition. But the other part knew that there was no way he could even _possibly _catch his almighty brother off guard right now and that all he would accomplish would be to kill Akima.

Sasuke faltered and the chidori died away. Itachi smirked and ruffled Akima's hair, earning a fierce glare. "Foolish little brother, did you really think I would let who I came here for be harmed?"

Meanwhile, Akima pulled at the chakra strings with all of her strength to no avail. "Grrr… "Akima strained hopelessly, but Itachi's chakra was doing its job quite well. She opened her eyes when an unexpected hand clapped down into her hair. Itachi. She glared at him fiercely and tried to pull away but found a tight grip around her wrists, preventing her from budging an inch.

Sasuke tensed up when he heard his brother's words, sharingan still glowing red in his eyes. But he knew that in this situation he was helpless. Itachi was too fast… much too fast… Even if Sasuke attacked him from behind, he would escape without any effort at all. It was then that Kakashi made his move.

"Uchiha Itachi, we do not wish to fight."

Itachi cast a slightly interested look at Kakashi and then an amused look at Sasuke's disbelieving face.

"Is that so?" he smirked. "You have my attention, Kakashi-san."

A surprised gasp cut though the silence. Everyone's heads swiveled in unison to look at Akima, who was in turn staring with her mouth gaping open at Naruto.

"Naaaaruuuutoooo!!! You're alive!!" she screamed happily. Naruto grinned and put his hands behind his head.

"Sure am!" he said cheerily. "Were you worried about me???"

"Yup!" Akima lied, nodding her head furiously lest the lie show through her eyes. _'I knew that the Kyubi would save him. At least I was pretty sure that it would. But I'm still glad to see him.'_

"ANYWAYS." Itachi cut in. "You were saying, Kakashi-san?" he let go of Akima's wrists as she started struggling more ferociously and instead, a blue string of chakra connected her bound hands to tie around his own wrist.

Kakashi coughed politely and continued. "I would like to propose a trade. We want her…" here he pointed at Akima, who was interestedly stepping back and forth, watching as the chakra string stretched and shrunk. "…for something that you wish of the same value."

Itachi looked thoughtful for a second. "Forbidden Scroll of Seals?" he said, smirking, already knowing the answer.

Kakashi sighed and slowly shook his head. " The Hokage would never agree to that… Isn't there anything else?"

"Not really." Itachi said with finality and turned away.

"Wait!" Naruto called. Itachi waited patiently.

Everyone turned to look at him. He was obviously disobeying his sensei's orders not to speak. However, Kakashi merely looked bored.

"I… I can make a better trade for her freedom." Naruto muttered, face down.

"Really." Itachi said emotionlessly, closely studying the boy.

"Hai…" Naruto looked up, smile unusually forced. "I can trade the Kyubi."

(Don't you guys agree that this would be the perfect end to the chapter? Oh well.)

Akima didn't know what to say. She just looked on in horror just as all of Naruto's teammates were doing. Even Shikamaru looked shocked. _'Naruto… how can you even think of that? What have I ever done for you that you treat me like this? I don't deserve your help… and most especially not your life. Or the Kyubi. Same thing, practically.' _Akima thought, her body frozen in place.

"…" Itachi contemplated silently. Then… "No."

"What?? Why not?!" Naruto shouted, blue eyes aflame.

"You would be more trouble than Akima. You are more knowledgeable about your demon and thus will know how to use its power to your own advantage better. You are loud. Your friends would come after you. And… your sensei has already attached a chakra monitor to you, so that he will know where you are at all times." Itachi replied. He silently added, _'Even though I could just remove that chakra monitor… but it's still less trouble to take the girl.'_

"But! I won't try and run away, I'll be quiet, I won't use the Kyubi's powers unless you tell me to…" Naruto whined, sounding as if he was begging to go on some great fun vacation.

Itachi shook his head, closing his eyes in a smirk. "I admire your bravery, Naruto-kun. But…" Here he opened his eyes to reveal the crimson Sharingan.

Kakashi gave a slight gasp and knocked Naruto over in his rush to block Naruto's eyes. "Nobody look into his eyes!" he shouted frantically, closing his normal eye and leaving open the Sharingan. A slight shuffle behind him told him that his students had followed his orders, clenching their eyes shut. But while he was distracted with worrying over his other students…

Itachi had gone, taking Akima with him.

"Naruto." Sasuke said, eyes wide, all thoughts of his older brother forgotten. "What were you saying about the Kyubi?"

Naruto was silent, eyes downcast. Kakashi sighed and leaned against a tree, closing his one visible eye briefly before turning to look at Naruto. "Well, you might as well say the whole thing, Naruto." Upon seeing the boy clench his fists and start to shake slightly, Kakashi added hurriedly, "But you don't have to if you don't feel up to it."

Shikamaru, Lee, and Neji were quiet, silently observing Naruto. They felt as if it was not their place to know, and it was Naruto's decision to tell them or not. However, they burned with curiosity.

'_Naruto is so troublesome… why was he talking about trading the Kyubi? It's already dead… but Sasuke's brother actually considered it… what's going on here?' _Shikamaru's stare lazily moved to Kakashi. _'He's in on it too… Naruto…'_

Neji was contemplating his past experiences with Naruto. _'Now we're talking about the Kyubi being alive? And Naruto has custody of it? What, is it a pet to him or something? Apparently Naruto would have to go with that Uchiha as well as the Kyubi… does it have anything to do with the abnormal chakra he summoned during the Chuunin Exam?'_

'_No matter what happens, Naruto-kun, I'll stick by you until it's through.' _Lee's eyes lit up with a blazing light as he clenched a fist solemnly. _'I don't know why you were talking about the Kyubi, but I don't care. You will always be my friend.' _(cheesy, I know, but that's the way Lee is)

Naruto stopped shaking and turned to face Sasuke. "I said I would trade the Kyubi for Akima's freedom."

Sasuke nodded once, confirming. "Yes… why did you say that?"

"Because I didn't want Akima to fall into your brother's custody again. It seemed like the only way to save her." Naruto's voice was quiet, his head low as he refused to meet anyone's eyes, instead staring at his feet.

Sasuke was disbelieving. "Naruto, how… why… would you want to trade the Kyubi? How could you possibly do that? It's dead!"

Naruto shook his head. "The Kyubi… technically it's not dead." He forced a grin and gestured to his scarred cheeks. "Know how I got these? Know how I defeated Haku? Know how I beat up one of Orochimaru's snakes before the asshole wrapped his slimy tongue around me and messed up my seal with the stupid Gogyo Fuuin (5-Element Seal)?" He turned to Neji. "Know how I summoned that weird chakra in the 3rd Chuunin Exam?"

Shocked silence met his questions. He sighed and turned to face Sasuke again. "The Kyubi… is right in here." He put his hand onto his stomach. His tone changed from forced happy to sad and low. "That's why the villagers hated me. I have killed so many…"

Again, there was silence in which Naruto fidgeted, waiting for his 'former' friends to pass judgment. Sasuke spoke up first. "Not you, Naruto. You haven't killed anyone. You are not the same as the Kyubi, though you share the same body." He smirked. "You're still dead last."

Naruto looked up at Sasuke, too surprised to say a thing. _'He…doesn't hate me? He isn't afraid of me?'_

Shikamaru yawned loudly before saying, "If you were Naruto two minutes ago, I think it's highly probable that you're still Naruto now. Nothing much has changed."

Lee punched the air. "I agree. Nothing has changed. You're still Naruto-kun."

Neji gave a silent nod of agreement, smirking slightly.

Naruto broke out into this huge sunny smile, making his eyes shine bright blue. He seemed hardly able to speak. "…thanks, you guys…" (God, I can't stand the cheesiness!)

Now Kakashi clapped his hands, startling everyone out of their warm fuzzy feelings as reality came back. "Ok, ok, now that that's all taken care of, we have a mission to do. Oh, and don't tell anyone about our Naruto's little secret, please. Now, fan out and look for traces of Itachi and Akima. Use these walkie-talkies to contact everyone if you find anything." Kakashi pulled 6 walkie-talkies out of no where and handed them out to everyone. "Make sure it's on line five. Within the hour I'll contact you if no one comes up with anything. And if by chance, someone does find them, do NOT engage them. By yourselves, you do not stand a chance."

Everyone nodded and sped off in different directions. However, Kakashi stopped Shikamaru before he could leave. "Wait, Shikamaru-kun. I have something to talk to you about in private."

Shikamaru gave a bored look and sighed. "Fine."

"I bet you're wondering why I decided to pull you into this mission and not someone who can track like Kiba and Akamaru."

Shikamaru gave a small nod. "Yeah, but I kind of figured it was because this is a super-A class mission and I was the only chuunin currently available even though I am new. As for Kiba, you can summon Pakkun, and smaller groups are better, right?"

Kakashi nodded in return. "That's correct. However, besides you being a chuunin, there's another reason… I watched you during both parts of the 3rd Chuunin Exam and have determined that your strategy-making skills surpass anyone else's here. That's why I need you to help me think up something to get Akima back."

Shikamaru made a 'ch' sound and thrust his neck back to stare at the sky above. "This is so troublesome… why did I ever think that being a ninja would be easy?" He tilted his head back down. "Why don't you fill me in on everyone's abilities here while we search? Maybe there's something we can do with that…"

Kakashi motioned with his hand for Shikamaru to follow and they both dived into the forest, becoming mere shadows.

With Itachi, Kisame, and Akima

Akima grumbled sullenly as she was led along by a chakra string connected between one of her hands to one of Itachi's. Her 'prisoner privileges' had been revoked, meaning that she had to be kept tied to Itachi at all times, had her weapons taken away, and wasn't allowed to make anything. AND, she had just learned that Kisame had let her faithful pillowcase be burnt to a crisp.

She wasn't happy.

True, it was her own fault for leaving it behind when she ran off, and if she had made it to freedom then she wouldn't be missing it half as much as she was now, but still.

She had been SO close! So incredibly close! Just a couple hundred more feet… maybe if she hadn't stopped to warn her friends than she might have gotten away.

Then again, probably not. She had been out of breath and tired. No, she wouldn't have gotten away. Besides, then her friends might have been in trouble. She was quite sure that Itachi would not have mercy on someone who tried to get in his way. Furthermore… Naruto… he was such a baka!!! How could he do something so selfless like that?! If Itachi had agreed, then what? Could Akima live knowing that Naruto had died to save her? Well, maybe not died. Been hurt in some way. The 'operation' was probably not fatal, Itachi had said. Then again, he may have been lying. She wouldn't put it past him to lie to calm her down so that the fear of death wouldn't aid her strength. But, of course, it's not like she could ever do anything to escape, whether she was afraid of her death or not.

That stupid baka.

'_I swear, Naruto, the next time you do something so utterly stupid I might have to kill you myself.' _Akima thought, mentally shaking a fist menacingly.

The trio walked in silence as Akima became bored and frustrated with her thoughts and started fidgeting with the bright blue chakra string around her wrist. She observed its qualities as she moved her hand back and forth, causing it to stretch out a little, then withdraw. Then she started winding it around and around, noting how it became thinner and thinner as it was stretched more and more…

Akima found herself tugging on the suddenly taut string as Itachi glared at her. There was a moment of silence as anime sweat drops rolled down the back of her head. Then…

"What?" she asked innocently.

Itachi said nothing, simply glared. Kisame translated. "He wants you to stop fiddling with the string."

"Oh." Akima relinquished her hold upon the string and watched as it grew shorter and fatter. _'Would it break if I stretched it out enough?' _she thought as they continued walking through the forest as the sun started to set, casting eerie shadows everywhere. She thoughtfully gazed at the back of Itachi's head. _'I'm guessing that he can tell when it's getting too thin though, since it's attached to his wrist…but what if I held one part of it and then snapped the part that's attached to my wrist? That way the part that he could feel would still be normal-sized, but mine…'_

Akima tried it out. She took hold of the chakra string and tightly pinched it with one hand and started rolling the string around her other wrist. As one might expect, it became tighter and tighter until it was painful on that poor wrist, but still Akima pulled at it. When she couldn't feel her fingers anymore, she decided that it was time to stop before her hand turned black and fell off. Sighing dejectedly, she unwound the string and felt blood rush into her hand, bringing life to her dead fingers.

'_Any other ideas?'_ She thought to herself dejectedly, flexing her digits painfully.

Itachi turned around to look at her again, and gave the famous Uchiha smirk. Akima childishly stuck her tongue out at him and covered her throbbing wrist with her other hand. He frowned and asked, "What did you do to your wrist?"

"None of your business." Akima muttered, glaring. She turned her head away in a pout and ignored the Uchiha's questioning gaze. When he stopped walking, she didn't notice (after all, she wasn't exactly looking where she was going) and bumped into him.

"What?" she said in answer to his glare. In response, he grabbed her forearm and held it up for inspection.

"What happened here? It looks like someone was trying to cut off the blood circulation, and there's some chakra burn…" he trailed off as he noticed the chakra string tied around her wrist. Then he gave a really nasty Uchiha death glare. "This string, by the way, is unbreakable. Why do you think I used chakra instead of a normal rope? So that you can't snap it. Winding it around your wrist tightly like that will only hurt yourself."

"Well, how the hell was I supposed to know that?!" Akima snarled back, eyes flashing. "I AM trying to escape, you realize! To do that, I'm going to have to get rid of this stupid string!"

Itachi didn't answer, instead gripping her forearm tighter until his knuckles turned white, his eyes cold. Akima flinched at the pressure exerted on her arm but refused to give in and cry out. This continued for some time, until Kisame decided to intervene.

"Itachi-san, you're going to break her arm if you continue." He said carelessly. Itachi's eyes suddenly widened and he peeled his fingers away from her arm, leaving finger-shaped purple bruises. Akima gave an angry hiss as she saw the damage on her poor arm and stuffed it into her pocket, pointedly ignoring the Uchiha prodigy while walking past him with her nose in the air.

Kisame sighed and swung his Samehada over his shoulder with a loud whoosh of air. "Itachi-san, do you want me to just knock her out with a bit of chakra-stealing or what? That way we don't have to worry about her hurting herself."

A few feet ahead of them, Akima paused. _'Steal chakra… that's right, the Samehada eats chakra…' _she glanced at the chakra string. _'Hmmmm…'_

"I trust that that won't be necessary, Kisame." Itachi said softly and turned towards Akima's back. "Akima-san…"

Akima didn't answer and continued strolling, trying to ignore the pain rolling up her arm in waves. _'This hurts… but I've been through worse. This is nothing. You wuss.' _Akima insulted herself to harden her resolve. _'Wuss, wuss, wuss…' _The mental chiding helped her forget about the pain and keep her glare face on without a hitch. She continued thinking about stealing chakra. If what Itachi said was true, the chakra string was invincible, but what if a chakra-eater like the Samehada were to slice through it? That would part it easily… But how was she supposed to steal the Samehada from shark-face? And plus, how could she even move that thing??? It looked like it weighed _a lot. _And then, once the string was removed somehow, what would she do after that? Itachi would just put another one back on, and if she ran, she would be caught up with easily. Hm… suppose the Samehada was somehow made to fall on the string _accidentally. _Kisame always leaned it against a tree when they settled down for the night. Maybe a little push… and then what? Maybe if she did it without anyone noticing that the string had been severed… Ha, fat chance…

She was startled out of her thoughts by Itachi who had somehow appeared beside her and had grabbed her injured arm out of her pocket.

"Leave it alone." Akima growled and attempted to snatch it away, but Itachi merely silenced her with a look.

"I'm going to fix it." He said softly. Gently, he ran his a finger down her forearm. "No breaks?"

"I said, don't touch it!" Akima snarled, balling her good hand into a fist at her side. Itachi eyed her with a small frown.

"I'm trying to help you, Akima-san. Not hurt you." He did not let go.

"You already DID hurt me!" she spat, shaking a little in anger, her fist clenching even tighter.

Itachi looked regretful. "I know, I'm sorry. Now, will you let me look at your arm or not?"

Akima stared at Itachi for approximately 5 seconds before she shook off her surprise. _'Did he just APOLOGIZE??? WTF???' _

"Sure…" she said meekly, relaxing her fist. Itachi nodded and resumed checking her arm.

"Tell me when it hurts." He said, using his index and middle fingers to press down in various spots.

"Nope. No. No. Nu uh. Hell yes! Yes. Yes." Akima said in response to his prodding. He nodded once and whipped out a little bottle. "What's that?"

"It's medicine for chakra burn. It'll help it heal faster. Unlike Naruto-kun, I don't think you can regenerate." Itachi answered, squeezing out a little medicine onto his finger and rubbing it gently around her wrist where a red-purple gash could be seen. He then took out another bottle and squeezed some of that onto the bruises. As he rubbed that in he said, "When you were in the demon form, I recall you being able to heal… therefore, it is my conclusion that all demon containers heal once they are in demon form. But not all do when they aren't." Finished, he drew back and smirked.

"…thanks…" Akima said quietly, inspecting her arm closely. The she smiled brightly. It didn't hurt at all anymore! "You're forgiven!" she piped and skipped ahead. Itachi blinked at her change in attitude, but then shrugged and they continued on their way.

With Kakashi and Shikamaru

"Ok, most likely our main priority would be to take down Uchiha Itachi, because I can probably deal with Hoshigaki Kisame." Kakashi said as he leaped from branch to branch.

"Easier said than done." Shikamaru groaned. "If you were to fight Kisame and everyone else was to try and attack Itachi, we would all die instantly."

"Well, you're the super genius, think of something. What I would settle for would be to distract him, get Akima, and then find a way to get away quickly, like a teleportation scroll." Kakashi said. "By the way, do you get the feeling that we've been here before?"

"Yeah." Shikamaru replied. "Look." He gestured towards two sets of tracks. "Those are ours, most likely."

Kakashi bent over the tracks and studied them closely. "You're right. We went in a circle. Stupid genjutsu." He brought his hands together to form the tiger seal, motioning Shikamaru to do the same.

"Kai." They said together and observed the new surroundings. Shikamaru was about to jump up again, but Kakashi grabbed the back of his shirt, pulling him back down.

"One more time." Kakashi said to the disgruntled Shikamaru. "Kai."

Once again, the scenery changed and they set off.

"That was a double genjutsu." Shikamaru said. "Did Itachi do that?"

"Most likely." Was the reply.

Just then, the walkie-talkie turned on and Neji's voice buzzed through. He said two words.

"Found them."

Author's Notes: Wow, another chapter of nothingness. It was shorter than usual, as well, only about 10 pages without review responses… Oh well… Darn it, we didn't even get to Shikamaru's plan!! Sigh… what do you people think, am I stuffing my story too much? Is it too slow? Review please!!! I beg of you, please!! PLEASE!!!! (sob sob) C'mon, feel sorry for me!

IMPORTANT!!!!!!!!

Oh btw, I need you people to answer these questions in your reviews… Should I do a pairing, and if so, who with? So far, lots of people seem to want AkimaxItachi… However! I won't do it if too many people are going to be mad at me… so…yeah, vote according to these #s to make it easy… or not, I don't care…

1. Akima x Itachi (does it matter what order the names are in?)

2. Akima x sumbody (Naruto, Sasuke, Neji, Shikamaru, Lee, Kakashi too I guess… and Gaara, he'll be coming back someday…)

3. No pairings

4. Some other kind of pairing not involving Akima at all... no Sakura tho, unless it's with Lee (this one will be hard to do… um… to be truthful there's not much hope here since Akima is the only girl as of right now… and the chances of me writing shonen-ai are low…)

Um, in all of these "relationship-like stuffs" I won't do lime or lemon... I don't know the difference between those… but we'll put it this way… all articles of clothing are staying ON! Got it? Ok! Vote!

END OF IMPORTANCE!!!!!!!!! Except for that pretty purple button down there. Don't you want to click it? You know you wanna… please?


	11. Three Simultaneous Battles…

Well, if I say so myself, I'm quite proud of this chapter. Fight scenes aren't easy, you know, especially for me. By the way, it took me a LONG time to write this one, and considering this was final's week, you should be grateful you got a chapter at all! (pout) No, of course I didn't write this chapter over winter break instead of final's week, would I lie to you? … Don't answer that.

Review Responses:

Ok, the votes have been counted. It stands thus:

AkimaxItachi: 9 votes-2 because some people said anything but that, so 7 votes.

Akimaxsumbody: 2 votes

NarutoxAkima: 1 vote. I thought more people would like this pairing…

SasukexAkima: 2 votes. Sasuke's a baka. At least for a while he is. Of course, he will always remain awesome, but it doesn't stop him from making dumb mistakes.

GaaraxAkima: 1 vote… Hmmm, Gaara WILL come back someday… soon… and he's quite important, as well.

NarutoxHinata: 1 vote. I like this pairing, but I'm not sure where I can stuff Hinata in… but the next time they visit Konoha I'll try to remember to put a little something in there.

Well, anyone who can count can see who won. Now really, peoples, no one voted for no pairings! That's the one I would have voted for… well, maybe not. Anyways… I might do a little something for Sasuke, Naruto, and Gaara x Akima… but it looks like the main one will be ItachixAkima. And don't worry about Itachi being overly nice or overly abusive… I'll do my best to keep it real, yet… non-abusive, if you know what I mean.

Nakashima-Michiyo- Yeah.. I'm 15 and I still act so immature, I mean, writing Naruto fanfics and obsessing over Itachi… btw, about this awesome Itachi wallpaper… give me the link in your next review? I looked for Itachi wallpaper and I couldn't find any good ones! And, I update every other Friday! Never beforehand, unless I'm feeling particularly generous. Also, final's week, as said above… so… yeah. Aw, we don't get snow… EVER. Waaaah.. we don't have the privilege of missing school because of snow or anything! It's so unfair… And I've never sledded, made a snowman, or had a snowball fight in my life. I've also never baked cookies. Under-priveliged child, that I am, if it weren't for my computer.

Dragon Man 180- Yes, Akima does make a lot of plans, doesn't she? They all kind of fall through, however… I'll see what I can do for your pairings. Thank you and review again!

XoXSilverDragonXoX- You got your wish! AkimaxItachi it is… I had to go change the summary and everything for that. Hmm… I have seen… 3 ItachixOc fics. Which isn't very many. I had a lucky penny once! I put it in this tiny little piggy bank, and then I was mad because I couldn't get it out. I still have it somewhere… Nnn, I can resist puppies. Believe it or not, I don't really like dogs that much. Especially since Akamaru is so impossible to hit in the Naruto game (whee! Itachi is so cool in there, but I like Kakashi better for some reason) But, if you hold up a ittle bittle kitty I won't be able to resist. I'm a cat person. Good luck at BRIT I guess… you play basketball? And apparently you're quite good at it. I'm a soccer person… I really suck at basketball, I throw it and it will bounce around on the rim a lot, but will never go in! Grrr… Yes! Curse those evil finals! Curse the evil chem teacher! Curse, I say, curse!

WadEver- Thank you, looks like you got your wish!

Kaori- Thanks so much, I hope it will continue to be interesting!

SilverLyght- Don't worry, I am just as crazy as you. I mean, Itachi is the royal badass and looks what's going to happen! I love Kabuto, he'll come along soon, but probably won't play that big of a part. Oro and Gaara will come to visit at some point…

Nitouryuu- Ah, an Uchiha lover? Me too! Then I got a little pissed at Sasuke… but he's still awesome.

pink-kitty- Ahhhh! It's hard writing! I could probably update faster if I didn't do my homework or something.. or maybe if I cut down on watching old naruto episodes over and over… I'm sorry, but unless the homework load decides to slouch 2nd semester, which I doubt, I will continue to update every other Friday. But, you got your wish, it's AkimaxItachi!

Rythmic- Yes, I love having reviewers like you! The ones that are happy no matter how much I screw up or if they didn't get the pairing they wanted! Thank you! I might put Naruto fluff. Might. If I can stuff it into the storyline somehow.

He Who Dragons Worship- Yes! Look, a reviewer that actually likes quality over quantity! Thank you! Um, no I check over my own work… why, are there errors? I figure that since it's my own fic, I should do all the work to keep it alive… Um… I'm sorry, but the reviewers have spoken and they want ItachixAkima… However! I won't make him abusive OR too good… I mean, he's obviously going to have to stop killing people on whim and all that… darn, this is going to be harder than I thought… Anyway, I'll do my best to preserve Itachi's awesomeness. Someone thinks I'm logical? Wahahahahahaha! That's funny! I made Akima logical, I guess… but the authoress is most definitely not…

Blood Contract- Yeah, AkimaxItachi is the one that would be the easiest to choose, but the hardest to write because I must preserve Itachi's evil awesomeness somehow… I'm not sure if Akima will ever tell her big secret… I haven't thought that far ahead! Thank you and review again!

hakia seana- Yes, I do have 3 kunai! And my brother's friend finally unlocked Itachi in the Naruto game, and he brought it over and beat us all up severely. I've discovered that I'm best with Kakashi… and gasp, I haven't tried being Itachi yet… You see, I really suck playing with anyone else besides Kakashi, and I don't want to see Itachi get beaten up… but I saw his special…and it wasn't that cool. Describe later. Gaara will come back! Maybe… three chapters from now? (hides from evil wrath) Yes, everyone really did vote for akimaxItachi. Well, most people did. But Itachi will still be awesome, and I will prevent fluff. Must prevent fluff. Itachi hates fluff, even though he has fluffly red clouds on his cloak. And yes, he DOES wear pants under his cloak! Sheesh! (When you come over, you can see the Itachi poster I have and see his pants.) Yes, yes, naruto dvds are cool. My dad says he saw some naruto dvds at some video game store, except that eps 1-25 were 50 dollars… Aren't you glad we use the illegal method? XD 10 pages is crazy? That's shorter than usual, the others are around 12 usually…

Nanashi Ouka- Well thanks, I guess… but next time, could you at least say something? Like a question, or something that you liked, or something that you think I could improve on…

Edana- Ok, another vote for AkimaxItachi then! What do you mean you're not sure if you're supposed to do that in here? Where else would you vote? Thank you and review/vote again!

ThEbItTeRPriNc3Ss- Yes, Itachi is so much cooler than Sasuke-baka! Yes, yes, I'm updating, sheesh! But I'm flattered, thank you, and review again!

Thinking up a title for this was not easy… too many things were crammed into this chapter… and then I couldn't think of anything creative and ended up with… this.

Three Simultaneous Battles…

"Found them." Neji's voice buzzed in through the walkie-talkie.

"Wait, you actually found the real them, not their tracks?" Kakashi said as he held up the walkie-talkie to his mouth.

There was a short pause. Then, "Yeah. I'm looking at them with the Byakugan. They appear to be headed northwest from here. I think we should be able to catch up pretty easily since they're walking."

"Ok, what are your coordinates?" Kakashi asked. Neji listed them off. "Everyone, rendezvous at Neji's position. Neji, do not move from there, but continue watching them as long as you can."

"Right."

Kakashi put away the walkie-talkie and turned to Shikamaru who had his eyes closed in concentration and was touching the tips of his fingers together in his 'strategy-making pose'. In a few seconds, he opened his eyes and looked to Kakashi.

"I'm not sure about this plan, but it's probably the best bet we've got." He said, pushing off from the tree branch to move towards Neji. Kakashi looked interested.

"Explain it to me on the way."

With Itachi, Kisame, and Akima

Itachi paused. _'This is a strange feeling. Am I being watched?' _He turned around and stared back at that way he had come. For some reason, he felt as if there was a pressure faintly being emitted from somewhere behind him.

"Itachi-san?" Kisame asked, walking up to stand beside him. Akima stopped walking and peered back interestedly. Itachi looked distant and a little confused. It was an interesting expression to see on the usually emotionless face. Then he turned around, mask back in place.

"It's nothing."

Akima shot a little annoyed look at him and then continued strolling. _'It's ALWAYS something.' _She thought. _'Wonder what it was?'_

They continued on their way but it became more and more obvious that Itachi was uncomfortable. He kept whipping around and scanning their surroundings before turning again, perturbed. And each time, Kisame and Akima would ask what was wrong and he gave the same answer each time until he finally lapsed into silence and ignored their questions all together.

When he did it for what seemed to be the 10 billionth time, Akima couldn't take it anymore. "Will you PLEASE tell us what's bothering you!" she practically screamed into his startled face. He paused.

"It's nothing."

(SNAP) (that was Akima's temper)

"AAAAAAAAAGHHHH! TELL ME OR DIE!" Kisame grabbed Akima's collar as she ran towards Itachi and held her, kicking and flailing uselessly, in the air.

"Calm down, brat." Kisame said, the Samehada over his shoulder. "We can beat it out of him later."

Akima snarled and only increased her thrashing. _'C'mon… almost… there!' _Without Kisame or an obviously very distracted Itachi noticing, she had finally been able to snap the chakra string by rubbing it against the sword over Kisame's shoulder. _'Freeeeee!' _Akima let herself hang and was gingerly put down by an annoyed Kisame.

"All better?" he asked with a smirk.

"Nnn." She replied and hung back a bit so that she walked behind both of them. But, just as she was about to bolt, Itachi swiveled his head back to look at her.

"Anything wrong, Akima-san?"

She thought fast. "Now, every time you look back you're going to have to face the full power of my glare until you tell me what's wrong!"

He smirked a little and resumed his stroll, twitching once in a while as if he wanted to look back, but never did again. That is, until the little group passed by a fast-flowing river with a current that went back the way they had come. It happened so fast, Itachi took approximately 2 seconds to realize what had happened.

(SPLASH)

tick tock tick tock…

"Akima!"

Hurriedly, Itachi tried to tug her back on the chakra string but found that it was missing. Cursing, he darted after her swiftly moving form. _'How on earth did she break it?'_

She swam with the current, bobbing along quite nicely and trying to keep under the water so that the missing-nin wouldn't be able to see her. But, the water was moving a lot faster than she had expected, and plus it was _cold. _She was going numb and it was getting harder and harder to move. Feeling the need for air, she swam for the surface.

(GASP)

She panted wildly, taking great big lungfuls of air. Then… this rock just suddenly appeared out of no where.

(SMACK)

Pain exploded on her forehead as she felt something warm slide down between her eyes. Finding it suddenly hard to move, Akima felt herself being pulled under as water entered her mouth. She was quite sure that water wasn't supposed to go in there and tried to choke it out, only to draw in more. Some small part of her consciousness told her to go up, but everything was much too heavy. The water was swirling around and pushing her forwards even faster as another rock decided to appear in her path.

There was barely any sound, just a mild 'thunk' as her forehead and the rock collided. Now, not only was it hard to move, she couldn't see either. She felt her lungs burn as she gasped for air but found only water, until she finally felt solid ground and the world stopped spinning. There, she threw up several times until she panted in deep breaths of precious air only to spew out more water. Exhausted, she flopped dismally on her side, breathing heavily and hacking.

Going back…

Itachi watched as Akima disappeared under the water before darting after her barely visible silhouette and running alongside the bank. "Kisame, get ahead and stop the river!" he yelled. "I'll watch her from here."

"Got it." Kisame replied before sprinting off ahead. Itachi winced as he saw Akima surface and smack into a rock, then frowned as she disappeared under the rapids. Worriedly, he squinted at the forbidding water, willing her to come up. As he saw the dark shape strike another rock, he almost dived in to go get her, but saw it wasn't necessary.

Kisame had formed a water bridge, using his chakra to lift the river from the riverbed in a gigantic curve over the spot where Akima lay, spitting out what seemed to be gallons of water.

"Hurry up and get her Itachi-san, this is pretty tiring…" Kisame panted, his eyes clenched shut in concentration. Itachi jumped into the soft mud of the river bottom and carefully picked up a very sodden Akima before leaping out again.

"Got her." He said to Kisame who let the river fall back into its original place with a wet splash. Then he promptly leaned on his sword.

"Phew, it's been a long time since I did that last." He breathed out giddily. Then he turned to look at Akima in Itachi's arms. "Oi, she's bleeding."

Itachi looked down and noticed that indeed, she was. A thin trickle of blood trailed from the middle of her forehead down the left side of her nose and over her cheek down her neck.

"Alright, let's stop here for today. I'll bandage her while you rest." Itachi said, placing her onto the ground and building up a fire pit. Kisame merely nodded.

Itachi had the fire roaring with a quick jutsu in just a few seconds and stared at the sopping wet Akima, who sat dejectedly dripping water and coughing lightly. He took out a towel and threw it at her.

"Dry yourself and then change your clothes otherwise you'll get sick." He said in response to her confused expression. "Then I'll look at that nice gouge in your forehead."

She tipped her head a little and rubbed at her hair, gingerly avoiding the wound on her forehead. Then she looked up sullenly at Itachi, who was digging through his backpack. "Kisame burnt up my spare clothes."

Kisame sighed. "It's your own fault for leaving your pillowcase there anyway."

"Yeah, don't remind me."

Itachi brought out a few little bottles and a packet of bandages. "Well, just dry yourself as best you can, then. I don't have any spare clothes either."

Akima eyed the humongous pack as she wrung out the bottom of her shirt. "Liar."

"I'm not."

"Yeah, right."

"He isn't." Kisame cut in. "That mysterious Uchiha over there doesn't have any money to spare."

"Darn that dumb mysterious Uchiha." Akima smirked as Itachi's eyebrow twitched. Just then, a little droplet of blood trickled down into her lips. She blinked and wiped it off.

"AAAAA! Blood in my mouth!" It was Itachi's turn to smirk as he watched Akima spitting profusely.

"You know, blood isn't poisonous."

"Quiet, you."

With Kakashi and Shikamaru

"Well, the main aspects of my plan that I've worked out so far is this." Shikamaru explained. "Each of the members on our team has several special abilities that you've already filled me in on and also that I can recall from the Chuunin Exam. Neji can paralyze chakra movement, has the ultimate defense, and can see far ahead of him. Lee is very fast and is skilled in taijutsu. Naruto has the Rasengan and Kage Bunshins. Sasuke knows many fire jutsus, can copy movements, has the Chidori, and is almost as fast as Lee. However, he has a grudge against his brother and cannot be trusted to follow orders when around him. You can copy movements too, but already have much more experience with the Sharingan than Sasuke, hence knowing more jutsus, and have the Chidori as well. And," Shikamaru jabbed his thumb at himself. "I can make shadows that paralyze the body for a short period of time."

"Yes." Kakashi agreed. "How does this tie in?"

"Well, if we can draw Itachi into a dark area and have Naruto distract him with many Kage Bunshins of all of us, I should be able to catch him with the Kage Mane no jutsu (Shadow Imitation Technique). Once he's caught, Lee will get Akima and go as fast as he can go to a safe location, preferably Konoha. At the same time as Lee is going, Neji should use the Hakke Rokujuu Yonshou (Divination Field, 64 Strikes) to block all the tenketsus in Itachi's body and then we all run after Lee. Itachi shouldn't recover enough to chase us until we have safely arrived back at Konoha."

Kakashi sighed. "It's a good plan, but you're missing a few things. First of all, Itachi can just look at you to destroy you. Naruto runs a deadly risk, and even if you can catch Itachi from behind with the Kage Mane, Neji still has to hit him in the front."

Shikamaru made a 'ch' sound. "I thought of that. I was planning on having Naruto just stay hidden while sending in Kage Bunshins. When I catch Itachi, maybe I could turn my head so that he is facing sideways. Or, even simpler, someone could blindfold him."

"Hmmm. I suppose that might work. And, what of Sasuke? Is he going to come with me?"

"Yes, I don't think he would cooperate with us teamwork-wise when up against his brother. Even today, he was almost going to ram Akima through but stopped at the last minute. He is definitely unstable when it comes to Itachi. You can work with him to defeat Kisame."

"He's not going to like this…" Kisame clutched a hand in his hair, rubbing furiously. "I suppose it's the teacher's job to tell them this, too. One more thing, how are we going to separate Itachi and Kisame?"

"…Well, let's just hope something comes up."

With Itachi, Kisame, and Akima

"Hey, be more careful, that hurts!"

"Bear with it."

Akima wriggled as Itachi dripped alcohol onto the gash in her head.

"Stop moving, this will _really _burn if it get in your eye." Itachi said, wiping away a stray drop with a little cloth. Akima froze up and shut her eyes tight. "Ok, all done with the alcohol. Now we'll just tie this bandage around…" Itachi wound the white bandage around her head a couple times and finished it with a knot. Akima rolled away quickly and patted it down.

"Thanks. Why are you being so nice to me anyways?" she inquired curiously.

Itachi shook his head. "Well, if I deliver an abused and bloody demon to the Akatsuki council, they won't be happy. You must be in good health."

"Hm. Ok, now tell me what you're using all that money for!"

"… You're quite nosy, aren't you?"

"I don't deny it. However, I prefer the word 'curious'."

"What I'm curious about is how long your friends are going to sit around watching us." Itachi stood up angrily, eyes flashing red. Akima abruptly jumped to her feet as well, scanning the surroundings furiously but finding nothing.

With Kakashi and co.

"Ok, does everyone understand their part in Shikamaru-kun's plan?" Kakashi asked, scanning the faces of all his students (minus the pink-haired one) for any sign of confusion. All he saw was determination in their eyes. "Good, we will engage them quietly. I will wait for everyone to be in position before I start the mist. Sasuke and I will draw Kisame away while you deal with Itachi. If anything should go wrong, do not hesitate to escape."

Everyone nodded, Sasuke albeit sullenly. _'They're trying to keep me away from aniki. As it seems, if everything goes as planned, I can slip away from Kakashi… and fulfill my revenge…' _Sasuke clenched a fist and activated his Sharingan as the Cursed Seal gave a painful twinge.

"It's time." Kakashi said. "Good luck."

Six ninjas silently leaped into the shadows.

And suddenly, we transport further into time!

Kakashi checked around and saw that each of his students had hidden themselves well within the foliage of the forest surrounding a small clearing by the river. Kisame was leaning on his huge sword while Itachi bandaged Akima's head. Beside Kakashi, Sasuke was twitching and spurted forth small amounts of dark chakra from the Cursed Seal, but hopefully not enough to catch the attention of the 2 missing-nin. Thankfully, he had not attempted to rush in there yelling death threats while charging the chidori. It seemed he had finally learned that that was not going to work.

But then, Itachi abruptly stood. "What I'm curious about is how long your friends are going to sit around watching us." Akima jumped to her feet as well.

Kakashi uttered a soft curse as he felt, rather than saw, his students freeze in fear. There was still the chance that Itachi had only spotted one or two of them…

Itachi turned to glare, his eyes red, straight at Kakashi. No such luck. If he had sensed the jounin, then surely all the genin and one chuunin were caught too.

"Kakashi-san, I thought you didn't wish to fight?" Itachi said coolly, wrapping a tendril of chakra around Akima's wrist again. However, this time it had double strings. Kakashi stood up.

"I didn't want to, but you left me no choice when you turned away from any peaceful methods." Kakashi said, pulling up his head protector to reveal the crimson Sharingan eye as Itachi smirked. Kakashi brought his hands together to perform a few seals that he had copied from Zabuza.

"Kirigakure no Jutsu! (Hidden Mist Technique)"

Itachi's red eyes narrowed as the area became cloaked in a thick fog. He could barely even see Akima anymore, but the chakra strings assured him of her presence.

Kisame uttered a low growl. _'He knows the Sharingan's weakness…plus, he copied that jutsu from Momochi Zabuza, I'm sure of it.' _His grip tightened on the Samehada. He could still feel the drain from lifting the river, but this was about revenge. Nothing would stand in his way of killing that monkey bastard. (sounds familiar, ne?)

Naruto observed the mist and took his cue. "Kage Bunshin no Jutsu!" A couple dozen Naruto's materialized and charged at Itachi's back, screaming loudly.

3rd person (Itachi) POV… What I mean by that is that it's 3rd person, but focused on Itachi.

Itachi turned and saw the flailing shadows dimly, easily parrying and ducking their forms' pitiful attempts at hitting him before disposing of them with a single kunai in hand. _'I'm guessing that these are Naruto-kun's shadow clones. Then… the real one is hiding in the mist somewhere… this cursed fog…' _Itachi felt a sharp tug on the double chakra strings as Akima was swept up by a rapidly moving shadow. Cursing, he created a shadow clone to take his place within the mist and ran, blindly following the string's pull. Because of the string's increased strength and the apparent speed at which the attacker was moving, Akima's hand could snap off if Itachi was too far away. That wouldn't be pretty.

He listened to the rapidly becoming distant sounds of his clone beating the crap out of more Naruto clones before focusing on the job at hand. The shadow was moving much faster than what was expected of a genin, but he was slowed down with the extra weight of Akima, it seemed.

Smirking, Itachi closed in easily and quickly on the two.

3rd person (Lee, Akima) POV

As soon as Naruto sounded his battle cry, Lee sprinted towards Akima at top speed, his weights already unfastened and on the ground. He grabbed her arm, quickly stifling her surprised yelp with a quiet hiss. "It's me, Lee." He felt her relax slightly and dragged her along behind him as he sped off. Praying that he wouldn't trip in the bad visibility of the surroundings, he put on another burst of speed, not wanting to underestimate his opponents. A sudden backward pull, and another squeak from Akima made him slow slightly.

"What's wrong, Akima-san?"

"I… was attached by chakra string to Itachi…" Akima said, cradling her throbbing wrist. Thankfully, it wasn't the same one that had been damaged by the first chakra string. "I think it's broken…" she said, inspecting the horrible way her wrist bent. Lee nodded, thinking she was talking about the chakra string being broken, not her wrist. After all, it's still foggy and he can't see her nursing her injury.

"Ok, then let's go." He said, grabbing her arm again and speeding off, unknowingly causing the double chakra strings to pull even more painfully on her already broken wrist. She gasped and gritted her teeth, grinding them together harshly as the pain increased the further they got from Itachi.

Then, the pain lessened slightly. It still hurt like crazy of course, but the pull had slackened a little. Which could only mean one thing. Itachi was coming after her. However, Akima didn't have time to think about whether she should warn Lee about that or not, considering how her wrist was being pulled off and she kind of wanted Itachi to 'rescue' her from the pain even though she knew that Lee was the real rescuer.

Itachi was suddenly in front of them, appearing in a cloud of dust. Lee skidded to a stop before pivoting and darting to the left, pushing leaves into the air, closely followed by Itachi. When Itachi's hand shot out and closed on Akima's broken wrist, she let loose a pained scream, causing him to draw back before closing on her forearm and wrenching her from Lee's grasp.

Lee swiveled around and took his famed stance with his palm up. But Itachi and Akima had already disappeared.

3rd person (Kakashi, Kisame) POV

Kakashi headed down to approximately where he believed Kisame was, making sure that Sasuke was following him. The sounds of Naruto fighting Itachi weren't very far away, but this place would have to do if they were going to take down Kisame. Spotting a very tall shadow, Kakashi motioned to Sasuke, who he prayed could see him in the fog, to circle around before letting loose a barrage of shuriken.

The shadow swung his sword to deflect the shuriken in many directions and came closer, bringing the sword behind him before swinging abnormally fast for such a huge weapon. Kakashi back flipped to barely avoid it but felt his chakra being drained just by being close to the Samehada. Landing in a crouch, he pulled a scroll from one of the many pockets of his jounin vest and quickly went through the necessary hand seals as Sasuke attacked Kisame from behind.

Before Sasuke could get a hit on Kisame's back, he was caught in the stomach by a backward lunge from the huge sword's handle. Falling to his knees and coughing up a few droplets of blood, Sasuke noticed something right above his head and rolled to the side as the sword crashed into the ground, leaving a crater where his head had been. Sasuke jumped to his feet and formed a list of hand seals before bringing his index and thumb together to form a circle which he then brought to his mouth.

"Katon, Goukakyuu no jutsu! (Blazing Fireball)" However, the flame only extended about a foot beyond his fingers, dampening and fizzling out in the mist. _'Can't use fire techniques in this thick fog…' _Sasuke thought, grimacing as he leapt to the side as Kisame came on again. However, Kakashi had finally finished his jutsu and slammed the scroll into the ground.

"Doton, Tsuiga no jutsu! (Tracking Fang Technique)" There was a loud _crunch _as the dog nins were summoned underground and sped towards Kisame, erupting from the earth and snapping at his feet.

Instantly, he jumped into the trees, swinging his sword at the dogs and knocking them to the ground, until Kakashi threw a fuuma shuriken (that's the big one Sasuke used against Zabuza the first time they saw him… it folds up.) making Kisame duck quickly and allowing a dog to attach itself to one of his feet. It dragged him down to the ground as all the other dogs jumped for him. Kisame swung his sword at them, successfully, fending most of them off, but then noticed the chirping sound coming at him from behind. Turning, he saw Kakashi running at top speed, dragging the mass of chakra electricity on his hand in the ground.

Frantically, Kisame thrust his sword into the path of the chidori and reeled back as the two smashed into each other with an explosion of dust. The Samehada had sucked in most of the chakra from the chidori but had not been able to take it all at once, so it emitted a huge blast that blew both Kakashi and Kisame back. Panting, they both rose to their feet, glaring daggers at each other. Suddenly, Kakashi thought of something.

'_Where's Sasuke?'_

3rd person (Naruto, Shikamaru, Neji) POV

Naruto could barely make out the blurry outline of his target, Itachi, as he made more and more Kage Bunshins to distract him. _'When is Shikamaru going to make his move?' _he thought irritably as the last clone was beat into the ground. Bringing his hands together, he began to summon more.

"Kage Bunshin no Jutsu…" he said, bored. More clones appeared and went to do their work.

"Naruto, there's a problem!" Shikamaru hissed, appearing suddenly beside the number one loud hyperactive ninja causing him to jump and let out a squeak.

"Gah! What's wrong, Shikamaru?"

"In this fog, nothing has a shadow! Since I can't attach my shadow to anything, attract his attention to the side opposite from us and I'll get him then."

"Fine, fine. You're supposed to think of something like this beforehand. Aren't you the master planner?" Naruto commanded his clones to all attack from one side.

"Well, Kakashi didn't tell me he was going to use mist, so it's his fault. Blame him. Kage Mane no Jutsu!"

The shadow reached forward, its complete black color contrasting sharply with the light gray-whites of the fog. Naruto frowned. _'I see what you mean, Shikamaru. It's very noticeable. Itachi would have noticed it at once.'_

The Itachi clone destroyed the last Naruto clone with a well-placed kick in the abdomen and abruptly noticed the shadow creeping towards him. He jumped into the air and let loose a barrage of shuriken towards the shadow's user, but was intercepted by Neji, who had noticed the failure of the plan and attempted to stab a few tenketsu on Itachi's arm.

Itachi pulled away and somersaulted onto a nearby branch, cursing softly when he realized that the shadow was still following him everywhere. Jumping again and spinning to avoid Neji's onslaught of chakra attacks, he grabbed a bendy branch and pulled it back before letting go, causing it to spring forward with a sharp _swish_. Neji jerked his head back just in time and only sustained a small cut below one of his Byakugan eyes before charging forward again

There was a sudden rush of chirping noises coming from behind Itachi and he turned to see Sasuke charging with the chidori, a rivulet of blood trickling from the corner of his mouth.

Itachi smirked, and let him come closer until he was right in front of him. Sasuke, blind to his rage, let out a furious howl as he thrust his hand forward.

Itachi took a simple step to the side, revealing Neji right behind him.

Sasuke's eyes widened, but he was already going and couldn't stop.

Time slowed down as the hand with the chidori came within an inch of Neji's chest.

Naruto and Shikamaru suddenly appeared, yelling incomprehensible things to him in the background.

"Kaiten!" Neji rotated wildly, his chakra barrier barely making it in time to parry Sasuke's chidori. In a swift spin, Sasuke was sent flying back into a tree, coughing up more blood. He had never been so happy or relieved to be hit before.

Itachi made a small, disappointed frown. "I was hoping to see my little brother's tortured face when he realized he had killed a teammate…" he said softly. Everyone glared at him. "But, that expression of fear that surfaced… it was good enough. I hope you learned your lesson, Sasuke."

He walked closer to his little brother, kneeling down on one knee to look him in the face.

"I can understand your need for revenge, Sasuke. But you have to realize that no one can ever hate me the same way you do. No one. So when you try and kill me, you can't have your friends there to help you. Revenge… is a one-man ambition."

Sasuke made no movement except for the clenching of his teeth and fists.

"Well, looks like even my clones teach you, my foolish otuoto." The real Itachi said, stepping forward with a thoroughly miserable-looking Akima in his arms. The Itachi clone poofed out. "Would any of you happen to know where my partner is?"

A stunned silence met his words.

"I guess not." Itachi said, before jumping off. Neji, Shikamaru, and Naruto stared at each other as Sasuke passed out.

"…We were fighting a clone that entire time?" said Shikamaru dumbly. The other two nodded.

"Wow."

"Um, let's take Sasuke and find Kakashi-sensei." Naruto said. The others nodded. Naruto went to pick up Sasuke and they jumped off to search together.

Everyone was a little pissed at Sasuke, and with good reason. To take up space, we will look at their thoughts. Try and guess who's who! (It should be easy)

'_Stupid stupid stupid Sasuke-baka! He almost killed Neji there! Wasn't he supposed to be with Kakashi-sensei! What did he think he was doing, interfering in our fight!'_

'_I told Kakashi about this. I KNEW it wasn't a good idea to bring him along. I KNEW it. But did he listen? Well, partially. But he didn't keep a good eye on him, apparently… or maybe he couldn't…ahh, why has life become so troublesome?'_

'_If I hadn't blocked that last attack… I would have died before I could release my kin from the cursed seal… the bird in a cage symbol… no, I must survive…for the branch house… and I will not allow even Sasuke to stand in my way…'_

With Itachi and Akima

Itachi jumped through the trees, landing as lightly as possible so as to not jostle Akima, who had decided that now would be a good time for a nap. He stared down at the damage done to her left wrist. It was bruised and battered, burned an ugly rotted red-purple from the chakra string tearing into her skin, and on top of all that, it was broken and the ligaments had been twisted and torn.

It would take a while to recover unless someone used chakra healing to fix it. However, neither he nor Kisame had learned how to do such a thing, as they had deemed it unnecessary. After all, who could harm the great Uchiha Itachi?

Her right wrist was injured as well, though not nearly as much as the left one. Basically, Akima wasn't going to be able to use her hands very well until they healed naturally or artificially (as in chakra-healing). Sighing lightly, Itachi moved a little faster as he heard an explosion up ahead. The Akatsuki had a medic nin that would help out. Just one more reason to get her to the Akatsuki council as quickly as possible.

Itachi stopped at the edge of a clearing where Kisame and Kakashi stood, panting slightly. Apparently, the Samehada had just devoured a large meal of chakra, as it was emitting little sparks. _'Chidori?' _Itachi thought interestedly. _'Oh well. Another time, Kisame. You shouldn't get serious yet.'_

Itachi stepped out and called to Kisame. "It's time to leave, Kisame."

Kisame sighed. "You NEVER let me have fun, Itachi-san!" he said, grinning. "Just this one time, let me take him on seriously."

Kakashi seemed shocked. _'He wasn't fighting seriously?' _Then he caught sight of Akima. _'Her wrists are all torn up… what happened…' _then something clicked in his brain. _'If Itachi is here with Akima, then… what about…are they…' _His breath caught in his throat as he thought of his students.

"Kisame, we both know what will happen if you do that. Don't you want to save up your strength for a real challenge?" Itachi questioned.

Kisame seemed torn between decisions, but then heaved a huge sigh. "You're right, as usual… you should thank Itachi-san for saving you, Kakashi…"

"Wait, Uchiha Itachi!" Kakashi stood up.

"I wasn't serious…" Kisame said, looking back at Kakashi oddly.

"What did you do to my students?" Kakashi asked, voice deadly quiet.

Itachi turned to look at him, his face expressionless. "They're fine. You'll find the Hyuuga one with a slight cut. That's the only damage I did to them. Sasuke, however…"

Kakashi was at rapt attention. "Sasuke…?"

Itachi was silent.

"What about Sasuke?" said Kakashi, voice cracking slightly.

"Well, he's probably fine too."

"…Probably?"

"Ask your students about what happened… and frankly, Kakashi, I think you need to teach him a little about how revenge and teamwork don't mix. I'm getting a little sick of teaching him all the hard things in life."

Kakashi stared at the missing-nin. _'What does he mean by that?'_

Author's Notes: Well, I think this was a better chapter than usual, right? RIGHT? I'm sorry if the fights were a little confusing and I'm sorry if Itachi is being too nice to Akima and I'm sorry for beating up Sasuke so badly and making him almost kill Neji… but he really really really hates his brother _a lot_. So… I don't think it's TOO out of character for him, and it's not like he was trying to hit Neji, after all… But enough excuses… reviews please?

I have a question for all of you… about the Akatsuki, does anyone know whether they usually have 9 members and therefore have only 8 since Orochimaru left? Or are they supposed to have 10 and now only have 9 because of Orochimaru leaving? Please answer, this is an important question for the plot…


	12. Snakes and Dark Rooms

Hey, what happened to the multitudes of reviewers who voted and then didn't review the next chapter? I guess some of them didn't like the outcome… I'm sorry, but majority rules, people… and as I said, there will be little moments (maybe)!

Review Responses-

Rythmic- Thank you! I feel special! Sorry about those mistakes. Peaceable? I can't believe I said that! (feels stupid) I mean, I DO proofread my stories… one would think I would catch dumb mistakes like that. Sorry! Whee! The 'relationship' thingie is going to be slooooow… I mean, Itachi IS a bad guy and all that. You'll see someday though…

Dragon Man 180- Thanks for the info on Akastuki. Yes! Sasuke-baka is dumb. Not really. But he is where revenge and his brother is concerned. Eh… the chakra string thing… I forgot about that! I will add it in a later chapter. Thank you for pointing that out! (whacks own head repeatedly)

Nakashima-Michiyo- Thanks for info on how many Akatsuki members! Eh… I'm not sure if I am just stupid or what, but I looked at your link and can't make head or tail of it. But it's ok, because now I found a different Itachi wallpaper that my other friend found. Eeee! And I also got an Itachi poster from my brother! (drools) Ya, it's pretty awesome. Finals are over! But my teachers suddenly all decided to assign big projects due next week. They're so nice. One would think we would get at least a small break, but nooOOOooo. No snow? Oh well. I can't update very fast! The plot is getting more complicated and I'm confusing myself! Plus, there's hw to be done.

XoXSilverDragonXoX- Yes, Itachi does make memorable phrases doesn't he? (evil laughter) I mean the foolish little brother and all that. Eh… other people say there's 10 members! I don't know who to believe! But then I decided that I'm not going to introduce all the members anyway, so it doesn't matter. Ah, I don't read the manga! No spoilers! (covers ears) I hate the Shonen Version of Naruto… they call the jutsu funny names! Like art of the doppelganger? And the evil eye for Byakugan? We made the word 'doppelganger' a cuss word in my little group of anime-obsessed friends. Yes, we're crazy. But it's funny (to us.. the normal people look at us funny). You can have earlier updates if you do my homework for me! … why not? Oh well. Sigh, looks like I'll have to do my OWN work! Sigh again.

TaraMarsters- Ah! I'm sorry, the vote has already been taken, but I MIGHT put in little 'moments' with the other characters that people seemed to like. So yes, there will be a tad of NarutoxAkima and stuff. Probably. It all depends on whether I remember to do it and whether it becomes possible… along with the plot and all that other complicated stuff. Yes, Naruto is so cuuuuuute! BUT Itachi is just so much more hot… (drool profusely) Thank you, here's your update! Review again!

hakia seana- Yes, Gaara's coming back someday! Somedaaaay… over the rainbow… ANYWAYS! Itachi doesn't wear a dress! When I next see you I'm going to smack you with your Yu Yu Hakusho DVD case thingie. Hard. If I remember. Which is unlikely because that will be 3 days from now. Yes… suicide is the best option! Screw Vash and Kenshin's ideals on all that. Repenting for your sins is for the GOOD people, not us evil ones. We just take what we can and give nothing back! (quote stolen from Jack Sparrow!) Danger is fuuuun... I will review your deviantart thing now. Well, after I post this.

Goddess of Cheese and Crackers- Love your sn! Gaara will come back! Don't worry! Soon, soon… thank you and review again. So many Gaara-lovers!

Snakes and Dark Rooms

Naruto gingerly hefted the unconscious form of Sasuke over his shoulders as he, Shikamaru, and Neji jumped blindly in the fog in search of their sensei. He was sure that they were somewhere near by, and yet they couldn't find him even after 10 minutes of searching. Suddenly, the mist cleared away and they found themselves in an entirely alien part of the forest. It was during the day, but the towering forbidding trees shut out practically all rays of sunshine and the floor was squishy and rotted with muck. And, worst of all, it was completely silent. Not a sound could be heard anywhere except the panting of the group and the slight shuffles made by their feet as they crept around in the hostile atmosphere.

"Maybe we should go back…" Naruto's whisper rang in the eerie silence. Shikamaru and Neji nodded, but discovered that they had no idea which way was 'back'. Neji activated the Byakugan and scanned every direction carefully.

"There's someone about 500 feet over there…" he said carefully, pointing. "It's not Kakashi, however. I do not recognize him, but he appears to be a traveler of some sort."

"Well, I guess he would know this place better than us." Shikamaru said. "The sooner we get out of this creepy place, the better." The others nodded and walked quietly towards the person.

The man appeared to have sat down to take a rest. On his back were a huge backpack and a rolled-up sleeping bag tied onto the top. His head drooped down, shielding his face from visibility.

Neji whispered to the others. "He must have fallen asleep." They silently agreed and Neji decided to lightly shake him awake, though it was rude. However, falling asleep in the middle of a possibly hostile forest was not a good idea, so he was actually doing him a favor.

Neji shook his shoulder and received no response. He shook a little harder, causing his head to loll to the side, revealing his face… except it wasn't there. Neji jumped back immediately and let the corpse slide to the ground with a plop.

Naruto stood stock still, fear making his pupils shake as he drew in shallow, quick breaths. Shikamaru was in the same boat, eyes wide and unbelieving. Then Neji spoke.

"This man… was alive… when I looked at him with the Byakugan only a minute ago…" Naruto took in a sharp gasp as everyone whipped around to scan their surroundings. It was still deathly silent.

"We should leave." Shikamaru said with finality. "Now. Neji, can you spot anyone else besides… this person?" Neji used the Byakugan again, scanning furiously. Then he breathed out a small sigh of relief.

"Kakashi isn't too far away. We've been heading in the completely wrong direction this entire time."

A loud hiss broke through the quiet forest and shuffling noises could be heard from all around.

Naruto gulped audibly, drawing a kunai. "Guys…"

"…Yes, Naruto?" Shikamaru said tensely, pulling out a kunai as well.

Naruto whispered so quietly that Neji and Shikamaru had to bend their heads to hear.

"…snakes…"

"Where are they?" Shikamaru questioned, eyes snapping back and forth as they took a back to back position between the three of them.

"Above!" Naruto let out an anguished yelp as five huge snakes burst from the trees' foliage and landed with a huge cloud of dust almost on top of them, as the three genin scurried away.

Naruto eyed the green-brown writhing mass of snakes with fear and distaste. "I hate snakes!" he spat, creating a dozen Kage Bunshins to attack.

Shikamaru growled. "That's nice to know, Naruto!" he yelled, his mind whirling with possibilities. Then he remembered something that made him smack a hand to his forehead, completely forgetting about the gigantic snakes that were slithering towards him. It's amazing how stupid some geniuses can be. (That goes for non-ninja geniuses as well!)

"We still have the walkie-talkies! Someone call Kakashi!" he yelled, flipping back to avoid the sudden lunge of a snake, its fangs snapping shut barely a foot from his face. He landed on a branch and stabbed at the snake's eyes with his kunai, missing as it drew back with an angry hiss, tongue flicking.

Naruto with an unconscious Sasuke over his shoulder tried to stay out of harm's way while his Kage Bunshins slashed at the two snakes that were angrily snapping back. "I can't right now, fighting!" he shouted to Shikamaru.

Neji had dispatched his two snakes a while ago with a few finger jabs in their eyes. Of course, those finger jabs were accentuated by chakra. "I'll do it." He said calmly as his teammates battled for their life. "Hello, Kakashi? Yes, Naruto, Shikamaru, and I were headed in the wrong direction and are quite far away from our starting point. Well, we're in this forest… Yes, I know that doesn't help much. There was a dead guy with his face missing and now Naruto and Shikamaru are fighting these huge snakes…"

Neji held the walkie-talkie away from his face as Kakashi's yelling could be heard easily even by Naruto who had a dozen screaming versions of himself in between him and Neji.

"GET OUT OF THERE RIGHT NOW YOU HAVE NO IDEA WHAT YOU'RE DEALING WITH I'M COMING TO GET YOU SO DON'T GO ANYWHERE, AND RUN IF YOU SEE A SCARY GUY WITH A LONG TONGUE!"

Neji took a moment to process this. First, he said to get out, then he said not to go anywhere, then he said to run if they say a scary guy with a long tongue. Hmm. "Roger that." He said calmly into the walkie-talkie and sat down to wait as Shikamaru finally defeated his snake and Naruto defeated one of his. Shikamaru came over to sit beside Neji and watch Naruto fight.

"He's not doing too well." Neji said as Naruto panted harshly, putting his fingers together to form the seal that everyone knows very well, summoning more clones.

"Someone should help him out." Shikamaru said, flopping back to stare at the treetops.

"Yeah, someone should." Neji said, flopping back to do the same.

Naruto finally slashed out the eyes of the snake and watched, grinning in satisfaction as the snake retreated back into the darkness of the wood, hissing furiously. Then, he quickly turned to Neji and Shikamaru.

"YOU BASTARDS! AND I HAD TO CARRY SASUKE-BAKA TOO!" he screamed, veins popping out of his skin reminiscent of the Byakugan.

"Naruto! Don't yell anymore." Kakashi said, popping up out of no where. "You let that last snake go, I saw. Now it's going to go tell its master that you guys were here. We have to leave now."

Naruto nodded, before bursting out again. "You saw me and you didn't help me either!"

"Well, there was this old lady that needed help crossing a road and-"

"LIAR!"

"Anyways, we should go." Kakashi said, gesturing at the two tree-top staring boys to get up.

"It's already much too late for that…" a cold voice cut through the forest. Neji and Shikamaru leapt to their feet, ears tuned to discovering where the voice was coming from.

"Who's there?" Kakashi said cautiously, pulling up his head protector slowly.

"It's me…" the chilling voice came from right behind Naruto, who was carrying Sasuke over his shoulder. He whipped around and stared at the hand holding a floppy flesh-colored mask that looked eerily like… Naruto stared at it, putting two and two together. His head slowly turned to look at the dead traveler without a face and the mask in the unknown man's hand. He jumped away at top speed, stifling a gasp.

Kakashi was not interested in the man's hand. No, his eyes were trained on the face of the man he had seen not too long ago, right after sealing Sasuke's Cursed Seal.

"Orochimaru…"

Orochimaru grinned, golden eyes lit up in amusement.

"We meet again, Kakashi."

Naruto noticed one very important thing.

'_Arms… healed… how?'_

With Itachi, Kisame, and Akima

Itachi listened closely as Kakashi's student talked on the walkie-talkie. "There was a dead guy with his face missing and now Naruto and Shikamaru are fighting these huge snakes…"

Itachi and Kisame started as Kakashi blew up. "GET OUT OF THERE RIGHT NOW YOU HAVE NO IDEA WHAT YOU'RE DEALING WITH I'M COMING TO GET YOU SO DON'T GO ANYWHERE, AND RUN IF YOU SEE A SCARY GUY WITH A LONG TONGUE!" and without even a goodbye to the two S-class missing nin, he ran off.

Itachi was silent. There was only one person he knew of that steals faces…

"Orochimaru." Kisame breathed, voicing Itachi's thoughts. He turned to Itachi. "I know you want to kill him, but Akima is our top priority right now and the Akatsuki isn't too far. We should go there as quickly as possible to alert them of Orochimaru's presence."

Itachi nodded slightly, shifting his hold on the sleeping Akima in his arms. It was rather amazing how she hadn't woken up from Kakashi's outburst. It was worrisome as well for her to sleep so deeply in the middle of the day. He looked at her injured wrist and sighed.

"I'll fix her up first and then we'll go. With good luck, we should be there by tonight." He said, gently placing her on the ground and carefully picking up her wrist, making sure not to bend it. He very lightly smeared a small amount of medicine over the chakra burn and wrapped it in bandages, fixing a splint on the outside before wrapping more bandages over that. _'That will have to do until we can get it healed.' _Akima did not wake up through the entire process as Kisame looked on.

Itachi reached down and picked her up again, stopping midway when she stirred slightly. But she merely leaned her head into the crook of his arm and didn't wake up. He straightened and silently nodded at Kisame, who nodded in return. In a sudden gust, they were gone.

And we fast-forward! Bzzzzz…

Itachi and Kisame didn't break their pace as the ground they had been running on turned into water. Lightly stepping on the clear liquid and creating ripples that swiftly became small waves; they flew at breakneck speed towards a dimly visible mountain cloaked in fog.

In almost no time at all, they reached the bottom where the gentle waves slapped against the stone wall rhythmically. With a leap, Itachi and Kisame stuck their feet onto the sides of the rocky cliff, Itachi with some slight difficulty because Akima was still obeying the laws of gravity and had practically her full weight on his chest. Sprinting forward again, the two dashed straight up for at least 100 feet until they somersaulted onto a small overhanging ledge, landing in perfect unison.

Before them was a blank rock wall. Absolutely nothing special about it, except that it happened to be genjutsu. It was practically impossible to break because of the constant re-doing of it every day, creating an infinite amount of illusion layers. It was said that it would take at least a month of constant 'kai'-ing or genjutsu-breaking to take down the high-level illusion before them. Why not just walk through it and spare yourself the trouble?

Not yet, though. Itachi shook Akima in his arms lightly, causing her to blearily open her eyes.

"…What now?" she muttered.

"Time to get up." Itachi said smoothly and placed her on her feet carefully. She wobbled for a second, then yawned and stretched before limply dropping her arms at her sides. Her left wrist throbbed horribly and she made a point of not even trying to move it, simply letting it hang. Her right hand came up to rub her tired eyes.

"Where are we?" she asked, taking a quick peak off the cliff and instantly shrinking back.

Neither of the missing-nins answered, so she resorted to glaring at first one and then the other.

"Ok… so what are we doing here?"

"Well, we've reached the end of this fun journey, Akima-san. And now, we'll just be going in. I suggest you stay right behind Itachi-san. And I really mean, _right behind him._" Kisame said, enunciating the last three words clearly and meaningfully.

"Eh?" Akima stared at him with the dumbfounded look that was usually specially reserved for Naruto only.

"Just stay behind me, Akima-san." Itachi sighed, closing his eyes in annoyance.

"Okie-dokie…"

Itachi turned and walked straight through the wall with Kisame. Akima paused for a millionth of a second before she darted in after Itachi's back.

The reason that Itachi wanted Akima to stay behind him became clear as soon as they reached the other side of the genjutsu wall. Two kunai flew out of the darkness and Itachi and Kisame caught one each between their index and middle fingers before immediately dropping them to the ground, point first. Evidently, this was some kind of password because a bored voice cut through the darkness.

"Names and mission status."

"Uchiha Itachi, mission successful."

"Hoshigaki Kisame, mission successful."

The lights turned on, revealing a man with short sandy hair leaning against the side wall with a clipboard in hand. He made two little nicks on it before turning to them with tired-looking green eyes. (Picture Genma, minus the senbon thingie, plus green eyes)

"Go right in. They were expecting you a while ago."

Itachi nodded his thanks before walking down the corridor, followed closely by Akima who kept her eyes on the ground. She stole a quick glance up at the bored guard as she passed by him but quickly returned her gaze to her shoes when she found him staring right back lazily. Kisame stayed behind.

After Itachi and Akima had disappeared past the door, Kisame turned to the sandy-haired guard.

"You got selected for guard duty, huh, Tora?" Kisame said, grinning. Tora nodded slowly, eyelids drooping.

"The hours are ridiculously long… I think I get to be replaced by Shuya sometime soon though." Tora replied, sagging his shoulders and stuffing his hands into his pockets. "Do you think you could get me some coffee or something? I'm so sick of throwing things at our members all day and night."

"Sorry, you know the rules. They're trying to keep you in shape. There haven't been any good thief missions lately, nothing to steal, nothing to do… and plus, no pay until you got guard duty."

"Yeah, yeah… I don't know how Itachi does it though, operating with so little sleep."

"All for the money… wish I knew what he's using it for. But you know Itachi, he won't tell unless he wants to. Mysterious guy."

"Hm. You'd better go on. Don't want Itachi to look good in there all by himself."

"See ya."

Tora nodded and resumed his glazed far-away look that was reserved for boring occasions as Kisame ran off down the corridor to catch up with Itachi and Akima, his sword thumping on his back.

Up ahead, Akima shadowed Itachi for about 200 feet before he told her with a glare that she could stop now.

"Well, since you made such a big deal out of it, I thought it must be something important!"

"Hm."

She skipped up beside him and started complaining immediately.

"It's been a long way since we came in. How much farther do we have to go?"

"A ways."

"Nnng. Why is it so far?"

"The main compound is in the center of the mountain."

A couple minutes passed in silence until Kisame ran up behind them and fell into step on the other side of Akima. The only sounds were the tapping of their footsteps on the stone floor. Akima hated silence. It gave her time to think, and usually her thoughts would drift to subjects that were not very pleasant, such as what the operation would feel like. She imagined little scenes in her head where the skin on her back where the demon seal was located was peeled off with rusty knives while she screamed in the background. An involuntary shudder ran down her spine and she began to notice just how freezing cold it was in the dim tunnel.

"Hey… Itachi?" she whispered in the suffocating silence. He turned to look at her and noticed her nervousness in her fidgeting hands and the slight squeak in her voice.

"Yes?" he asked in a long suffering tone. She withered into a tight ball, tensing her shoulders.

"Never mind… It wasn't important." She muttered, examining her feet.

"We've got a while. Out with it." Kisame said.

Akima cast a side-long glance at the emotionless Itachi that walked beside her. "Well… I was wondering if either of you knew what they're going to do with me. And after that… what's going to happen…"

"Don't know." Said Kisame.

"Don't know." Said Itachi.

"You guys are very reassuring. Don't you at least have a small idea?" Akima said disbelievingly, twisting to look at first one's face and then the other.

"We were assigned to bring back a demon container. That's it. My only guess is that they want the demon's power inside of you." Itachi said nonchalantly.

"And after that?"

Itachi and Kisame were silent.

"They can't let me go, can they. I know too much, right?"

"…"

"So what, then I just die?" Akima's voice rose a little higher, whipping her head around, trying to divulge the answer from the two criminals' cold eyes.

"Answer me!"

"We're here." Itachi said. And indeed, they were. The tunnel had ended in wooden double doors, highly polished and gleaming forebodingly. Akima couldn't help but take a step back as Kisame pushed them open, but a nudge from Itachi sent her into the darkness on the other side of the threshold. Itachi stepped in, and closed the door behind him with a final click.

The room was completely dark. So dark that there was no difference between having one's eyes closed or open. Not a single thing could be discerned in the inky blackness, but there were voices. Akima found herself shrinking back into Itachi who stood behind her as she heard people talking about her, their voices bouncing around imperceptibly in echoes.

"That's the demon child?"

"No, it can't be the Kyubi one."

"Which one is it?"

"Uchiha and Hoshigaki, explain yourselves." A commanding voice cut through the others and silence fell once again.

Kisame explained all that had happened, including Kakashi's attempts at rescuing Akima and describing in much detail her first demon seal crack. Whispered mutterings and stated thoughts filled the room after he had finished. Akima tried to sidle around Itachi to get to the door, but found herself being gently poked and pushed back to where she had been before.

"Bring the demon forward." Spoke the same voice from before, and Akima was prodded forward. She took a few shaky steps and felt the stare of invisible eyes on her.

"Name, age, and describe how you felt when your demon was released."

Akima bit her lip in agitation. She had always had stage fright. Nothing was scarier than standing up in front of a bunch of people and talking. _Nothing. _And she always had the annoying habit of forgetting about absolutely anything important that she might need as soon as she opened her mouth. What was her name? I dunno. I forgot.

After a moment of silence in which Akima seemed about to speak on several occasions, the voice asked again, mildly irritated. She still was struggling on the first word.

"Akima." Itachi hissed, poking her in the back of the head. "Hurry up."

_Akima. _That was her name. Thanks, Itachi.

"Akima, 16, I felt..." she paused. It seemed so long ago. Her memories came in little bits and flashes, but the overall feeling was… _anger_. "I was angry, I guess…"

"About what?"

It was so hard to remember. What had happened? It seemed like it had been so long ago when in reality it had only been a few days. Angry… about what? Naruto! Yes, that Unagi guy had stabbed Naruto in the stomach!

"A man hurt my friend…" she managed to stutter out.

A few hushed mutters broke out again before the commanding voice spoke again. Thankfully, it was not directed at her.

"Uchiha and Hoshigaki, you are dismissed."

She heard the light footsteps and the creak of a door from somewhere ahead of her as the two missing-nins left. For some strange reason, light still did not penetrate into the room when the door was opened. She took a few hesitant steps forward in the darkness, halfway extending her good arm in front of her.

"You're not done, Akima."

She stopped and dropped her hand to her side, listening. Now she was all by herself in the creepy dark room with a creepy person talking to her. Joy.

"Since preparations must be made before we are ready to deal with you, you will be contained within this mountain for as long as will be necessary. This time period may stretch from a few weeks to a couple months wait, during which any attempts made to escape will be dealt with severely. However, since this entire compound is protected exceedingly carefully in more ways than I care to inform you of, you are free to wander around as you please. Just as long as you do not enter or even attempt to enter any closed and/or locked rooms."

Akima nodded. Wait a little while before pain begins. Free wandering, but no prying. Got it.

"During the wait, you will be assigned a room to stay in. You will also be provided with an instructor who will keep you healthy while confined. This person may change from time to time depending on what missions we have available."

Akima nodded to the blackness again. The blindness was getting to her, and it seemed as if there were lights at the corners of her eyes, causing her to turn to look but never finding anything. (If you've ever been in a completely dark place for a long time then you know what I mean. If you don't, just take my word for it, it happens.)

"You may leave, then."

She slowly stepped forward again, right arm out in front of her. Cautiously, she took small, hesitant steps forward, the tapping of her feet echoing eerily until the tips of her fingers brushed against another door. Slowly, she felt along on the wall/door/hard vertical surface, the entire time feeling eyes on her back. When her hand hit the doorknob, she grasped it and practically tore it off its hinges before tearing out into blazing light.

'_Light! Yes! I love light!_' she mentally yelled, squinching her eyes almost shut as dark spots danced in her vision. Her hands, scratch that, _hand, _reached up to rub her eyes until she could see properly again.

She was in a large circular room made entirely out of stone. It was entirely empty. Along the walls were at least 15 or more doors, all exactly the same; polished wood with a circular handle and a key lock.

'_Eh… ok…' _Akima thought as she walked forward into the room. When she reached the very center, the doors seemed to blur for a second before returning to normal.

'_Whoa… must be more tired than I thought…' _Akima blinked and turned around a couple times. Nope, nothing was different. However, by turning around like that, she had completely lost any sense of direction she might have had in the first place… Like now, she didn't even have any idea which door led back the way she had come. When she realized this, only one thought entered her mind.

"Crap."

So, without further ado, she walked up to the door that she happened to be facing and attempted to pull it open. However, as soon as her hand touched the doorknob, she discovered that it was extremely, extremely, hot. With a strangled yelp, she pulled back her burned fingers and stuffed them into her mouth. (Poor Akima, I've done so much damage to her hands…)

Glaring at the door fiercely, she moved to the one directly to its right and, more cautiously this time, twisted the doorknob. It swung open effortlessly and she entered.

However, she faced a very long corridor, with, you guessed it, many, many, DOORS on both sides.

"AAAAAAAAAAAA!" her scream echoed down the corridors and the screen went farther and farther away in little jumps until we're looking at the entire mountain (know what I mean?).

Scene change! Back to Orochimaru and company!

"We meet again, Kakashi." Orochimaru's golden snake eyes lit up in amusement as Kakashi, Neji, Shikamaru, and Naruto who carried Sasuke over his shoulder stared at him wide-eyed.

"What are you here for?" snapped Kakashi, hand ready to lift his forehead protector at any given moment. His visible eye slid from Sasuke back to Orochimaru. "If you're after Sasuke again, we won't have much talking to do."

"Ara ara, you're always so business-like, Kakashi. Yes, we should cut straight to the point, shall we?" Orochimaru carelessly flipped the piece of flesh he had been holding over his shoulder. A loud snap was heard as the snake that Naruto had stabbed the eyes out of slithered from the undergrowth, blood dribbling from its mouth and eyes.

"Normally, I would just have my pet snakes here take care of intruders… But when this one came back with her poor eyes damaged, I had to see my guests."

"What is it that you're after?" Kakashi repeated, slowly pulling up his head protector, revealing the Sharingan eye underneath.

Meanwhile, Naruto was whispering to Neji and Shikamaru about who this mysterious snake-man was.

"He beat up both Ero-sennin and Tsunade baa-chan!" Naruto hissed to his wide-eyed friends who were in rapt attention.

"At the same time, kitsune." Orochimaru said, looking over Kakashi's shoulder at the crouched genin and chuunin. "However, I was forced to retreat due to…extenuating circumstances. But now…" Orochimaru lifted both his perfectly healthy arms up into the air. "I'm all better."

Author's Notes: I haven't forgotten about Lee. This chapter seemed to simply be long enough without him. And look! Oro's finally here! The main plot might actually start in the next chapter! (gasp) Btw, I have absolutely no knowledge of the Akatsuki… or of the real reason that Itachi killed everybody (I mean, killing everyone to test himself was BS, come on, there's gotta be something else…), and next to nothing about Kisame… I will have OC's posing as the Akatsuki members, but most will probably not become too important. Until next time, please review!


	13. A Child's Bloodlust

Author's Notes: Whee, another chapter… so tired… I'm sorry about not updating on Friday peoples… I had friends over again and we attempted to watch a lot of Naruto episodes in one sitting again, and this fic kind of slipped my mind. Then we woke up really late. Enough, I will post now. Sorry!

Dragon Man 180- Lol, Itachi can't be a pervert! There's too many already… Kakashi, Jiraiya, Ebisu… That would be great though. However, I have already planned what he's saving up for… But seriously, that would be great. I was thinking about having Akima mark the walls somehow… but I couldn't think of how she would do it. She doesn't have any kunai or anything… Ahh… well, Oro had to confront them for the plot to work out… you'll see…

Nakashima-Michiyo- Well, I love writing this story! Except when I get writer's block… Sometimes, I just can't summon the willpower to write, and then other times, like on weekends and breaks, I'll write 5 chapters or so in a couple days… I'm happy though, we get a small break next week! Of course, the teachers decided that we all needed to suffer even when we're at home, so they piled on all their assignments… Ah, if you were my little sister, I'd probably torture you mercilessly… Maybe. And we'd fight over who gets the Itachi poster. Well, thanks for your support! I'll keep writing!

Rythmic- Ah, gomen… I'm sorry, I just… I've been having a lot of stuff going on okay? So forgive me for updating so slowly… You update on your story really fast, I don't see how you do it. For me, homework is the main problem. I really try to update faster, its just hard. Sorry?

Altariel Eldalote- Gasp, I've been huggled! (feels happy) Hope this chapter keeps your current opinion of this story up!

ThE BiTtEr PrInCeSs- Uh yeah, the 'operation' that Akima will supposedly get is scary… I've been pretty vague about it because even Itachi and Kisame don't really know what's going on there. But I find medical-type stuff scary, don't you? (i.e. shots, surgery, etc.) And I though it would be worse if you didn't really know what it was and how much it would hurt and whatnot. Um, about the 'Itachi gives money to Sasuke' thing… all I can say is… SHHHHHHHHH! (lol) You're the only one who noticed that, I thought I was making it obvious!

ArrowOfHikaru- Yay! Ah, I kind of didn't want there to be any pairings either because I have no experience whatsoever writing them… but don't worry there won't be too much. Probably just something for all the people who wanted a pairing near the end.

mrasdfghj- LOL, a fellow sakura-basher! Yes, she does deserve to die. And I WILL kill her in some horrible way (not sure about the donkey thing tho, lol) but I'm still deciding about who will do it. It'd be nice for Akima to do it, but more funny if Sasuke does it cuz she's always hanging off of him and all that. Itachi would be good too.

Kayo-chan- Ah… ehehe… sorry, I'm kind of putting that whole AkimaxItachi thing off because I'm scared of writing it. I plan to take it slow… first respect, then friendship and all that. And I'm starting to put in small hints and stuff starting with this chapter, so… Don't worry, I asked for it, so I have to do it. (clenches fist) I can do this! I just have to work up my courage…

A Child's Bloodlust

"But now…" Orochimaru lifted both his perfectly healthy arms up into the air. "I'm all better."

Kakashi's eyes glared ferociously at the snake sennin. He had heard of the spectacular fight that had taken place between all three sennins, with Orochimaru holding his own against both Jiraiya and Tsunade without even using his arms. If Orochimaru had truly regained the use of both of his arms, it was likely that the second point on his life list would be pursued soon. Whether that was the destruction of Konoha or the gaining of Sasuke as a new body, he didn't know, but both choices were bad. However, first things first.

"How did you manage to do that?" growled Kakashi, motioning to his students to stay put and quiet. It was a good thing that Sasuke was already unconscious, otherwise who knows what pain the Cursed Seal could cause him simply by being in the same vicinity of this evil man.

Orochimaru grinned, a truly scary sight. "That's a secret…"

Kakashi's glare hardened. "Fine. What are you after? Is it Sasuke?"

"No, no, Sasuke-kun is no longer of supreme importance... rather, the two I would like most to have in my possession are… that kitsune child behind you _and _Sasuke-kun, Kakashi."

Naruto, Sasuke slung over his shoulder, flinched back a shadow. _'Me? Stupid Kyubi…' _Both Neji and Shikamaru stepped in between Naruto and Orochimaru, putting on their fight stances.

"You will never lay a finger on either Naruto or Sasuke, Orochimaru." Said Kakashi.

"Won't I?" said Orochimaru as he suddenly appeared behind Naruto and Sasuke, poking a pale finger into the blond's unruly hair teasingly.

With a growl of rage, Naruto took an angry swipe at Orochimaru's hand. But the man took it back quickly and chuckled lightly at the fox demon's look of annoyance. Kakashi moved to attack, but was suddenly stopped by the appearance of Orochimaru's right hand shinobi, Kabuto, who had suddenly materialized with a poof.

"I'm afraid that I cannot have you interfere with Orochimaru-sama's plans, Kakashi-san." Kabuto said as he held up a kunai threateningly.

"Get out of my way!" Kakashi snapped as he tried to shove past him, but was cut short as Kabuto's kunai went to Shikamaru's neck. Kakashi froze, as did Neji.

"Now, now, Kakashi-_san_… let's not be rude, shall we?" said Orochimaru, grinning. "Wouldn't want to lose more of your precious students than is needed, right? I already have a student of yours in my possession… He wandered into a couple of my pet snakes a little while ago. Lee-kun, right? Be reasonable."

"Don't you dare hurt Fuzzy Eyebrows or Shikamaru!" shouted Naruto. "I'll go, just leave them alone!"

"Naruto, don't be a baka… though that's impossible." Said Shikamaru, who still looked bored despite the situation. He even had his hands in his pockets.

"How noble of you, kitsune…" hissed Orochimaru. "So you see, Kakashi? Naruto-kun wishes to come with me."

"Naruto…" said Kakashi softly. "I'm sorry…"

"Ha, it's ok, I'll be fine…" said Naruto as he gave his signature grin and put one hand behind his head. "Besides," he added in a loud whisper, "You guys have to rescue me, right?"

Shikamaru and Neji would have smirked, Kakashi would have made a curved eye, but the only expression on their faces were regret and hopelessness as Orochimaru and Kabuto slowly backed away, triumphant grins pasted onto their faces. Kabuto attempted to take Sasuke from Naruto's shoulders, but received an angry glare and let Naruto carry him.

Then, they simply melted into the air, disappearing without a sound.

None of the group said anything for a long while.

With Akima

"WHHHHHHHYYY!" she yelled as she faced the long corridor of doors. "WHY ARE THERE SO MANY STUPID DOORS!"

When her strangled scream did nothing but echo around both the circular room and the long corridor, she sighed and proceeded in, closing the door behind her. Relying solely on instinct, she walked forwards on the stone floor until she felt like opening a door, which she did after 5 or so doors. It was locked.

'_So much for instinct.' _She thought as she tried another. Also locked. She tried another. _Click. _It opened!

Rejoicing, she pushed it open and stared at… a wall. Suspiciously, she put out a hand and ran it over the cold surface of the stone. Seemed real enough. With a loud sigh, she shut the door dejectedly, head bowed. The next second, she beat her fists mercilessly on the poor door and started ranting about how much she hated this place. After several minutes, she tried another door on the other side of the hall and found it to be unlocked.

'_I swear, if this one is a wall too, I'm going to lose whatever sanity I have left…' _she inwardly growled as the door opened. Inside, was a lavishly decorated bedroom. The windows had long purple curtains and the bed was a four-poster, also decorated with purple curtains. In fact, the overall theme of the entire room was purple. With a relieved sigh, Akima stepped inside.

(WHAM)

Rather, she _would _have stepped inside, had she not crashed into the invisible barrier. And it hurt, too. She slammed the door with all of her strength. At her old home, she would have enjoyed the way slamming a door made the entire house shake. Here, it did not do so, and it only pissed her off even more.

Akima decided that she had had enough and ran all the way to the other side of the hall without attempting to open any more doors. There, was a set of _double doors_. Wow, the difference!

Taking a few deep breaths to calm herself, she slowly pushed them both open to reveal… a corridor without doors! She jogged to the end and, with a quick glance both ways, took a right. Then a left. Then a right. Then straight. Straight again. Right. Left. Left. Left. Right. Dead end. Oops. Back. Right. Left. Straight.

"Uhhh…" she came to a crossroad of about 5 different pathways. By now, it had struck her that this was a maze. And she was completely lost. With a shrug, she walked into a random passage and continued getting herself even more lost.

An hour later…

"I… really… really… really… hate… this place…" she groaned as she came to the 5-way crossing for what seemed like the billionth time.

Her only hope, it seemed, was to get out of this place before she starved to death… or maybe someone would be kind enough to come looking for her or something.

"Where the hell are you, Itachi, Kisame?" she growled at the wall. As if in answer to her question, a voice popped out from behind her.

"Hmm, so you are a friend of theirs?"

Akima whipped around and stared at the boy behind her. He looked like he was about 12 years old, but for some strange reason had short white fluffy hair. His skin was even paler than Sasuke's giving him a vampiric look. However, his eyes were bluish-green and full of… it was hard to tell. They looked like… they were mischievous, and yet… Akima shook her head. It was impossible for such a young child to hold such killer intent in their eyes. Cold, and… deadly. (Just like Itachi! Hee hee… this is Killua from Hunter X Hunter… yeah, the same one that Itachi changed himself into. Didn't you wonder where Itachi got his disguise?)

"Eh… what?" said Akima. "Who are you?"

"I'm Killua! I asked you if you were a friend of Itachi-san and Kisame-san!" Killua cocked his head to the side and looked at Akima curiously. "Am I wrong?"

"Well…" she considered it. "I don't think they really consider me as a friend…" she shrugged her shoulders. "But whatever. Hey, do you think you could get me out of here? I swear, I'm so lost… I've been here forever…"

Killua blinked twice. "But, the game isn't any fun if you cheat!"

"What game?"

"The maze."

Akima gave him the 'what-the-hell-are-you-talking-about' look.

"This maze. It's a game. To win, find your way out alive." Said Killua, shrugging his shoulders. "You've never played before? When you come in, you're supposed to turn it on so that the enemies will appear." He grinned. "You didn't turn it on, so it's no wonder you're bored. Here, I'll turn it on for you. All you have to do is-" Akima cut in swiftly.

"Wait, but I can't even find my way out without any enemies, don't-"

"The enemies tell you which way to go. Where the most amount of enemies are, that's the right way."

"Isn't there any other way to get out?" said Akima exasperatedly.

"Nope. Shall we start? It's your first time, so I'll help you. All the enemies are genjutsu, so don't worry too much… but they will take some of you chakra if they touch you or hurt you. It's fun!"

Akima sighed and drooped her shoulders, admitting defeat. "Fine… go ahead."

Killua grinned and clapped his hands together once, holding the palms together. "We'll start with level one. Then I'll raise it from time to time so that it will get harder." He said. "Once I release my hands, it will start. Things can happen pretty fast, so get ready. Three…two…one…Game start!"

Killua jerked his hands apart and Akima watched, disgusted and amazed, as his fingernails pushed their way out of his fingers until they had grown at least an inch and sharp as knives. He grinned at her and pointed behind her with a long claw.

"Behind you."

Akima turned and jumped at the same time to see… a man dressed all in black with his face covered completely in a ninja mask throw shuriken at her. With a squeak she tumbled to the side and reached for her own weapon holder… only to find that nothing was there.

'_Well, great.' _She thought, as the man rushed towards her, holding a kunai in each hand. She waited until he was just about to strike and then ducked down and tried a Lee move… the disappear and kick upwards one. Success! The man flew back and hit a wall.

"Yay!" Akima jumped and punched the air. "Take that!"

"Hmm, how about level two?" said Killua as he clapped his hands again.

"Eh!" she barely stepped out of the way as the man, rejuvenated, and a couple of his twins came at her again. They were much faster, and stronger too. But, these illusions didn't have any sense of strategy, they simply tried the same tricks, if any, over and over again. Akima grasped after a few times that whenever one came rushing at her alone, the others were coming at her from behind and above, the two weakest points. And she also learned that throwing the shuriken that they had dropped did not work, as the illusions simply caught them and threw them back at her.

After a few more minutes, Akima thought that she had found a good strategy; a way to beat them easily. It was simple really, she would just summon as many Kage Bunshins as there were enemies and leave each to their own devices. This, however, had one fatal problem.

"Kage Bunshin no jutsu!" she said, summoning five shadow clones without using a seal. (Her wrist is broken, remember? And Naruto does that too sometimes, if you notice. Making Kage Bunshins without using a seal, I mean.) Then, she promptly fell over in her stupidity.

"Ugh… why am I out here again? I just want to sleep…" said Lazyass, the number one shadow clone.

"Whee! Bloodbloodbloodblood…" chanted Psycho.

"Fighting is bad! Let's all be friends, c'mon you guys." Said Pacifist.

"Teehee! Ooooh, he's hot!" said Ditz as she waved at Killua, who gave her a glare that was almost as powerful as Itachi's.

"…" said Depressed as she slunk away to sit in a corner.

"Akima… What is this?" said Killua as he glared around, hands in his pockets. "Ah, above you."

Akima jumped to the side as a ninja landed in the place she had been a second before. "My… stupid… shadow…clones…!" she panted as she parried the enemy's attacks.

"EEEK!" shrieked Ditz as one of the illusion ninja took a swing at her.

"Oh c'mon, now you aren't even going to _try _and protect yourself?" Akima yelled at Ditz, who sniffed and inspected her nails.

Killua glanced around. "Well, I suppose that they can pose as good meat shields." He said, smiling lightly. "How long ago did Itachi do this to you?"

"What? _Itachi _did this!" Akima said, completely forgetting about the enemies and turning to face Killua, shocked.

"To your right."

This time, Akima couldn't escape as fast as the ninja's kunai cut into her arm, spilling… blue chakra. _'Oh yeah, they can't REALLY hurt me… stings a little, though.'_

"Wait, stop the game, what were you saying about Itachi doing this to me?"

Killua looked at her and cocked his head to the side again. "You don't know? Didn't Itachi use the Gogyo Fuuin (Five Element Seal) on you when you were a demon? That messes up your chakra pretty badly. I can sense its effects. All around you… ah well, I'll get 'em."

Akima glanced around and saw that she was being charged from all sides. Suddenly, Killua appeared and flitted in and out of her vision, stabbing and shredding with his five fingernails/claws. In less than a second, all the enemy shinobi were lumps of flesh and scraps of cloth lying on the ground.

"Well, if you want to stop playing, we've got a while to go, so let's start and you can ask me questions on the way. Are you still playing or are you going to just follow me?"

"…Whatever." Akima said.

"All right, let's go to level fifty. I need a little warm-up."

Akima sweatdropped as she walked behind Killua as he shredded everything in his path with lightning speed. "Level fifty… I feel like a wuss… How many levels are there?"

"Not sure, I've only gotten to level one hundred and six. I can't really compare with the rest of the members… I specialize in one person assassination, and fighting so many high-level ninjas at once becomes tiresome. And to answer your next questions…"

Killua performed a gravity-defying roundhouse kick in midair, not looking in the least tired out as they continued to move forward. The Akima clones trailed behind Akima, for once shutting up.

"Itachi probably used the Gogyo Fuuin to weaken your demon form a lot. Now that you are safely contained within the Akatsuki walls, he'll fix it up. Speaking of which… I should probably take you to him once we get out. I bet he'll be wondering where you wandered off to."

That sounded like a good idea to Akima. After all, Itachi, Kisame, and this new Killua person were the only people that she knew at all inside this little (scratch that, large) prison. And although Itachi and Kisame had been… shall we say… cold to her before she was put into the scary room enveloped in darkness, they had been pretty nice before that.

And thinking about that suddenly made Akima feel depressed. Whether she liked it or not, she was probably going to die in this place and never see true, unfiltered sunlight again. And then, with a little 'blip', Depressed (as in the clone) disappeared.

'_Well… there we go. Depressed is in my mind again.' _And Akima could hear her proclaiming nasty horrible endings to her demise and how nobody would care that she was gone and all of that kind of stuff that makes one feel depressed in the first place.

"Sigh…" sighed Akima.

Bzzt! To Itachi!

"Yawn." Yawned Itachi as he stepped into his own personal room. Yes, every Akatsuki member gets their own personal room inside the inner chambers of the mountain. Itachi's happened to be decorated in his own personal style, which consisted of black and red everything. The decoration of Itachi's room could rival Dracula's castle. If mangled corpses didn't smell so bad, Itachi might have even dragged a few of them in here to add to the décor.

His room even came equipped with his own personal Sharingan-style bathroom! With a toilet AND a shower! Gasp.

Yes. Itachi liked his room a lot, and was always happy to return here after a long and hard mission. Not that any missions were very hard for him. Because he was just so awesome. So, anyways, first things first. His overall plan for the rest of the day was… take a shower, then eat, then see how Akima was doing, then sleep.

See how Akima was doing? Well… he supposed that it made a small amount of sense that he would wonder if she was ok. After all, he had left her all alone in the Akatsuki room of questioning. That entire room had a very powerful genjutsu bound to it that made anyone who entered through the first door blind. However, when you entered from the other door, it was perfectly normal.

The entire Akatsuki fortress was constructed with only two things in mind. Escaping notice from outsiders, and defense against an enemy attack should one ever come. That first room was very good for that, because the enemy shinobi would be blind while the Akatsuki members would be able to fight normally. Then, if they should be driven back even more, unlikely as that was, there was the rotating room.

That room would rearrange its doors so that it was practically impossible to know which door one had just come out of and which one to go into. Itachi, and all the other Akatsuki members for that matter, were recognized by the chakra mechanism and were therefore able to get around with ease. Enemy shinobi would become hopelessly lost and confused.

Come to think of it, Akima should be out of the questioning room by now. He should go get her. Well, maybe after he took a shower.

Itachi liked long showers.

So, after maybe… an hour or so, Itachi was finally ready to go get her. Hopefully, she would have the sense to not go wandering about in this trap-filled compound. Right?

Itachi reviewed what he had learned about Akima's personality. He increased his speed from leisurely Shikamaru-style walk to brisk… non-Shikamaru-style walk… that metaphor did not turn out too well.

Rounding a corner, Itachi stopped to stare at another of his fellow Akatsuki members, Shuya the healer nin. (because medic nin doesn't sound right to me.) Shuya had short green hair in the exact same scruffy style of Naruto's and was quite tall. However, despite the green hair, one of his characteristics stood out more than anything else. And that was that his left eye was red while the right one was purple. He wore the uniform Akatsuki cloak, which clashed sharply with his hair and eyes.

Remembering Akima's broken wrist, Itachi silently motioned for Shuya to start following him around.

"I'm sorry, Itachi-san, but I have to go relieve Tora from guard duty. You are not injured, are you?" said Shuya distantly.

Itachi shook his head and continued on his merry way. The nerve of him, to think that the great Uchiha Itachi could be injured. What an idiotic question. He would drag Akima off to see Shuya when he found her.

As he entered the circular rotating room, he suddenly realized two things. One, Akima had wandered off, as he had predicted. Which wasn't that surprising considering that no one had even told her to wait. The second was that he had absolutely no idea where she could have gone.

"Oi, Itachi." Kisame strolled up. "Here you go. Straight from the council." He held out a piece of folded paper.

"I have a new assignment already?" said Itachi, surprised, taking the paper from Kisame's pale blue fingers.

"Open it, you'll be surprised." Said Kisame. "By the way, more news. I already informed the Akatsuki about Orochimaru's whereabouts and they're going to send people out to spy on and track him as soon as they can pinpoint his location."

Itachi paused before reading the paper in front of him. "They're only going to spy on him?"

"Apparently. The higher-ups are secretive. They never tell us Akatsuki members what's going on. If it were me, I would send out all the available members to assassinate him."

Itachi nodded absentmindedly as he glanced over his new mission. When he reached the bottom of the page, he suddenly realized that he had not absorbed a single word. Not wanting to have to read it again in front of Kisame, he quickly pocketed it and gave a goodbye nod to Kisame before sauntering off in search of Akima.

With Akima

"So… how far away is it now?" Akima asked, trudging her feet along wearily as Killua dispatched of countless enemies in front of her. The clones she had dispersed of, seeing as how they were getting annoying with all their different personalities jibbering in her head.

"We're almost there. Just the boss now." Killua said calmly. As soon as the words left his lips, a man dressed in a red ninja suit jumped out into view. Behind him was a plain gray metal door.

"Hmmm… how should I do it, Akima-san? Do you think I could beat him without using any jutsu?" Killua asked, putting his hand around his chin.

"I'm sure you can do it!" said Akima as she eyed the silent red warrior. _'If he's come so far without using any jutsu or even breaking a sweat, this guy should be easy too…'_

"Good." Said Killua as he smirked up at his enemy, neither moving. "I wanted to try it. It's a little hard to do hand seals with these claws anyway. Sometimes I cut myself."

"I'll just… cheer you on from the sidelines…" Akima said, grinning as she leaned on a nearby wall.

Killua held up his claws threateningly. "Come."

The red shinobi responded, instantly poofing out and appearing in back of Killua, lunging forward with a kunai. However, Killua nimbly stepped to the side, causing Red to stumble forward haphazardly.

There was a sudden flash of… something. Akima couldn't even see…

And then the red warrior fell over, missing the piece of his abdomen where his illusion heart had once been. Akima stood, blinking. Then her mouth fell open with a lopsided "wha…?" In a daze, she turned slowly to stare at Killua, who was smirking evilly, his one visible hand bloodied crimson, and the other shoved lazily into his pocket. Then, his evil grin became a chibi-smile.

"Whee! Never gets old! Thought he would be tougher though, don't you think?" Killua said, dancing around the room like a little kid with lots of presents. As he moved, red droplets dripped outwards in a bloody shower. Akima was still frozen in place. Killua, curious, put his hands behind his head and looked over with what would have been an adorable expression had his off-white hair not been soiled scarlet.

"Ehhhh? What's wrong?" Killua glanced around, and seeing nothing out of the ordinary, walked over to her and waved a hand in front of her face. The bloody one.

Akima blinked a couple times. "If everything is an illusion… why is it so realistic?"

Killua looked up at the ceiling and scratched his head. "Well, Itachi-san is a good illusionist!"

Pause.

"Itachi… made this…game?" Akima said.

"Yup!" Killua nodded childishly. "It was my birthday present! Though he said it was only because I needed a place to let out all my… what was the word again? Oh yeah, _bloodlust_. And he also said some stuff about how it was good training and this way I wouldn't bother him anymore. But what was most important was that he made it all for me!"

Killua hummed and skipped around before suddenly dashing back to Akima again. "And then, and then! Itachi said that if I could beat it he would give me something! I bet it's going to be a new technique or something really powerful and cool! I wonder what it is… ne, do you know?"

Akima smiled and shook her head, much to the boy's disappointment. "You're a lot like someone I know." That person was Naruto, of course. And Killua is alike in his last sentence up there. Not in the bloodlust-type stuff.

Killua looked on curiously again before shrugging his shoulders and bounding up to the door. "Alright, now to find Itachi. Let's go!"

Akima nodded before proceeding out. _'I have a feeling that there are a lot of interesting people here…' _

"Hey, you hungry?" said Killua as they entered the circular room that had confused Akima before.

"A little, I guess. Oh, there's Kisame." Akima said. And indeed, Kisame was simply standing there, lost in thought. Akima coughed to get his attention.

"You just missed Itachi, Akima-san. He went to the kitchen." Kisame said. "He has something important to tell you."

"Ok."

Akima looked at all of the doors in turn. Still, there were no differences in between them. "Oi, Killua… which one is the kitchen?"

"Hmmm?" Killua cocked an eyebrow at her. "That one." He pointed.

Akima turned to go. "Thanks. But how can you tell? Every door is the same! There aren't even any symbols or signs or… anything."

"The wood pattern is different." Kisame cut in. "The kitchen door has a dark brown swirl on the bottom-right corner. But you should be careful; since you're not an Akatsuki member, the doors will change their locations, but not their appearance. So, pay attention to your surroundings and always check to see which door you're going in to."

Akima listened intently. "Great." Now she had to be on alert at all times! Even the doors were against her!

"Well, I'll go see what's up with Itachi, then. Thanks." Akima sidled up to the kitchen door and swung it open, peering cautiously inside.

The kitchen was… clean. It looked like a normal kitchen. Not much else to say about that. There was a refrigerator, a sink, counter space, a washing machine, a door that probably led to the pantry… and one of those long conference room tables that was presumably used as a dining table. I mean, what else would it be used for?

Itachi happened to be rummaging through the fridge. When Akima entered, he poked his head out and then looked back in.

"What do you want?" he asked, coming back out with a chocolate milk bottle.

"Um… Kisame said you had something important to tell me?" Akima said, eyeing the chocolate milk curiously. "And since when do S-class criminals drink chocolate milk?"

Itachi blinked once. "First of all, I was asking you what you wanted to eat. Secondly, I do not recall ever telling Kisame that I had something important to tell you. And thirdly, I believe all S-class criminals should be entitled to being able to like chocolate milk."

"Oh." Akima bounced up next to him and peered inside the refrigerator. "What can I have?"

"Anything." Itachi replied, taking out the letter he had received from Kisame and reading it again, this time taking care to pay attention. "And it appears that I do have something important to tell you."

"Hmm? Changed your mind?" said Akima sarcastically as she pulled out a chocolate milk as well.

"Hn. It looks like I'm not going to get any new missions for a while."

Akima took a long drink before replying. "And that's important for me because?"

"I'll be training you." Itachi sat down at the end of the table.

At that moment, several things happened at once. Akima choked and proceeded to have a coughing fit. Killua practically broke down the kitchen door in his haste to get inside, followed by a rampaging stranger with black and white hair. And somewhere on the other side of the compound, Kisame tripped and fell on the floor. This is what was said:

Akima: (choke cough choke) "Whaaaaaaaaaat!"

Killua: "Help help Itachi! Haru's trying to kill me!"

Stranger: "DIE BRAT!"

Kisame: "Ow, my toe!"

Itachi: (sigh)

Akima turned and got a good look at the stranger. The upper part of his hair was long-ish and white, while the bottom part near the neck was short and black. He was pretty tall, and wore a thin white jacket over a plain black shirt and khakis. Currently, he was frothing at the mouth.

Killua scampered behind Itachi's chair, using him as a shield while Haru vaulted onto the table, and put his hands together to form a hand seal.

"Brat, you get out here right now before I call out something nasty!" Haru snarled.

"Itachi! Save me!" squeaked Killua who was cowering under the table near Itachi's knees, arms protecting his head.

"Haru-san… what has Killua done now?" said Itachi in the I-don't-give-a-damn voice. "And also, please don't call anything right now, otherwise think about the mess you'd have to clean up."

"That… KID… he… LOOK!" Haru turned around so that his back was facing Itachi, who raised an eyebrow. Akima hurried over to stand behind Itachi's chair and clasped a hand over her mouth to keep back the snicker.

On Haru's white jacket, there was a bloody smear on the shoulder blade.

"He touched me when his hands were like THAT!" Haru screamed, putting his hands on his head and falling to his knees. "Oh, misery…"

It was Akima's turn to cock an eyebrow, confused. She stared with a little frown on her face at the now still and quiet Haru who sat dejectedly on the table. Killua cautiously crept out from his hiding place under the table.

"Is he going to be alright?" whispered Akima to Itachi, who nodded, contentedly drinking his chocolate milk. Akima bit her lip, staring hard at Haru, who looked like he was about to cry.

"You know, we could try to wash it out…" Akima started, but was suddenly silenced by Itachi, who held up a hand in front of her face warningly. Unfortunately…

"Try to wash it out?" Haru said disbelievingly, disgust clearly written on his face. "This? A white shirt? Blood? Try to wash it out? ARE YOU F-ING CRAZY!"

"I'm sorry!" It was Akima's turn to scamper under the table, terrified.

"Haru." Itachi's voice was quiet and calm. "Do not get angry with Akima. She was merely trying to help. You must control your emotions."

"Yeah, yeah!" Killua put in supportively.

Haru gritted his teeth and squinched his eyes shut, looking for all the world like he was constipated. Then, he took several deep breaths. When he stopped his face was calm and collected.

"Sorry, Akima. I lost my temper. It will not happen again."

"That's ok!" came Akima's voice from somewhere under the table.

"AND YOU!" Haru slapped himself hard and returned the level of his voice to normal. "Killua, please remember to wash your hands after you kill something, ok?"

"Hai…" said Killua meekly.

"Ok…" Haru serenely got off the table and walked out the door, twitching, as Akima cautiously crawled out from under the table. When the door closed with a soft _click_, Killua burst out laughing.

"(insert laughing here) Oh man, he's gonna flip when he finds out it was genjutsu…" Killua giggled, rolling on the floor.

"Nevertheless, don't involve me with your squabbles anymore, got it?" said Itachi as he took a sip of his choco-milk.

"Fine, fine…"

While Killua was still lost in his giggling fit, Akima suddenly remembered something. "Ah, Itachi, what did Haru-san mean when he said he was going to 'call out something nasty?'"

"Ooh, I know! I know!" yelled Killua, jumping up and down while waving his arms in the air energetically. Itachi decided not to answer since Killua was so willing to do the work for him.

"Haru was going to call out some dead people! He's a necromancer!"

"…coooooool." Said Akima after some thought. "I thought Orochimaru was the only one who knew how to do that. Doesn't he need sacrifices?"

'_What? Orochimaru has brought the dead to life before?' _thought Itachi. _'How does she know that? What is with her and knowing all these things about Orochimaru and Kisame and me…' _A sudden suspicion made its way like a wildfire through Itachi's mind. _'A Konoha spy? That would explain her willingness to come… without very much trouble at all, considering that she's a demon… and a single team of genin and Kakashi sent out to retrieve her? Not even any ANBU… why didn't I see this before?'_

"Nope! Haru has _mastered _it!" said Killua, totally oblivious.

"Akima. Please explain how you knew that Orochimaru has brought the dead to life." Said Itachi harshly.

"Ehh…Because… nnn…" said Akima, trailing off and looking at her feet.

Itachi waited for 10 seconds, the silence getting heavier as time passed. Even Killua was surprisingly quiet. Apparently he had discovered that Itachi was serious.

"Well?" said Itachi, glaring at Akima.

"…" '_Think! Think! Oh shit oh shit oh shit…' _thought Akima, panicking.

"If you have no answer, then I think we have much to discuss." Said Itachi, reverting to the cold awesome evil Itachi that we all know and love.

And with those words, Itachi stood up, chocolate milk forgotten, took Akima's arm, and dragged her out of the room, leaving Killua behind.

"Where are we going?" whimpered Akima. She was very well aware of what kind of pain and suffering Itachi was able to cause. I mean, you would be crazy if you weren't at least a little bit afraid of Itachi.

"…" Itachi was definitely in a surly mood, not gracing her with an answer.

Author's Notes: Done. Joy. Who knows what Itachi will do? Don't worry people, I won't KILL Akima or anything (cue evil laughter). However, I think I've made her kind of dumb. I mean, she's made a lot of slip-ups. Oh well.

SPELLING CHECK! Is it Kimimaru or Kimmimaro or what? Neither looks right…

In regards to my OC Akatsuki members, I know I introduced at least… lessee 4 members. I am not going to make them into main characters unless I really feel like it or if the reviewers beg me to, which is unlikely in my opinion. But you never know, do you?

If you do want any of the following Akatsuki members to have a more prominent role in the story, go ahead and say so. Or not. Whatever. I put their bios so that you can remember who they all are… (I know I hate it when too many OC's are introduced all at once because I can't remember who's who… And look, here I am doing it myself…)

Tora: I introduced him last chapter… he's the Genma look-alike, sandy short hair and green eyes. Profession: Thief and spy. Lazy, Shikamaru-style type of person. Name stolen from Samurai Deeper Kyo, but no other traits of that character used.

Shuya: Has scruffy Naruto-style green hair, tall, left eye is red while right eye is purple. Profession: Healer… and ice master. Dunno why. Ice is cool. Kind of the star-gazer type, very distant. Name stolen from Battle Royale the novel… again, no other traits used.

Haru: The upper part of his hair is long-ish and white, while the bottom part near the neck is short and black. He's pretty tall, and wears a thin white jacket over a plain black shirt and khakis. Profession: necromancer… in case you don't know, that means bring animals (humans included) back from the dead to do your bidding for a period of time. However, the zombies are mindless and all that… Haru is also a schizophrenic, meaning that he has alternate personalities. I think you saw… I didn't put much into his peaceful, nice side so far, however… Name and slightly changed traits taken from Fruits Basket…

Killua: Killua actually isn't an Akatsuki member yet… He is about 12 years old, has short white fluffy hair, skin is vampiric-pale, and deadly cold, and yet, mischievous, bluish-green eyes. Profession: assassin… the kind that rips people's hearts out (again, cue evil laughter) I haven't mentioned it in the story yet, but he can also manipulate electricity… (this time, lightning strikes and the lights flash as the evil laughter continues) Entire character taken from Hunter X Hunter, traits and all.

There you go. Go ahead and tell me you opinions. This isn't really a vote, because if I find reason to then I will make one of these characters become more major whether the reviewers find him awesome or not, but if you tell me then I will make the most popular one make more appearances and good stuff like that. So, go ahead, review.


	14. Secrets Shared

Author's Notes:

WE BROKE 100 REVIEWS PEOPLES! WHEEEEEEEE!

Dragon Man 180- I was thinking about making Killua into friends with Naruto since they're so much alike in personality, but certain events make it a little hard. Later though, they'll probably get along a little better. Ah yes, my thoughts exactly about Akatsuki not wanting Orochimaru to have a demon on his side... however, at this moment, the Akatsuki hasn't yet been informed of Naruto and Sasuke's capture...yet. And Naruto will shine with brilliance later on... as of now, I'm still keeping him as a baka.

XoXSilverDragonXoX- Ha, now if Itachi was going to hurt Akima, then how would I explain the ItachixAkima pairing? It would make it a little hard. No problem with the non-reviewingness. I can totally comprehend school's evilness. Wait, you already had spring break? Lucky! Mine is still 2 weeks away or something... Yes, finish that chapter! I want more Kakashi and Yama! (bangs on table) But, I can wait... for a little while. Thank you and review again!

mrasdfghj- Mm, not sure about Akima being a full Akatsuki member... I don't really think she's powerful enough for that at this point in time. I like the idea of Sakura dying from bana peels... but I'd rather torture her first just to draw out her suffering. Like pulling out her stupid pink hair or something. (snickers evilly) Um, yeah. I'm not deranged. Really. Btw, since your hatred for Sakura is so immense, you would probably like my new fic called Rabid Fangirls. It has major Sakura-bashing in it and is, to put it plainly, pure randomness. Check it out when you're done with this chappie!

Rythmic- Lol, yes, Itachi-goodness all around. Not so sure about the tense atmosphere though. I kinda tried to make one, but I'm not sure how that turned out. Sort of disappeared after a bit. Ouch! Rubbing alcohol is painful. Homeowrk sucks! I say we take out our schools and teachers with all of our awesome non-existent ninja skills! Or... not. But it would be fun.

ArrowOfHikaru- Thank you so much! Review again!

Kira- Agh, can't... resist... puppy dog eyes... nnnnn... Killua is definitely going to become more important than most of the other Akatsuki members. In fact, right now, you're looking at the 2nd most important, after Itachi. So don't worry about it, Killua will stick around! Wow, that's a lot of updates... lessee... 45 updates. Um, I'll give you one and we'll call it even, k? Thank you and review again!

ThE BiTtEr PrInCeSs- Thank you for the spelling check on Kimimaro! Eh, you haven't read the chapter yet? Ehhhh? Do you skip to the end to read my author's notes or something? Oh well, thank you and review again!

Altariel Eldalote- Agh! No! Itachi+makingout NO! Lol, a lot of people seemed to think that something along those lines would happen though. And I was trying to make it scary! (Oh yes, with my oh-so-wonderful writing skills) Yeah, I noticed that Killua's name sounds like killer too when I watched HunterXHunter... and he definitely is. (evil laughter) Yes, Haru is cute... luv Haru too! Ah, to tell the truth, I wasn't sure if I should ever have Akima tell the truth... or at least the whole truth about her past. I mean, it's a little hard to explain... especially since, as far as I know, they don't have computers or anything... but you'll see! Itachi, think Akima's crazy? Itachi's the crazier one! Lol, I can see her being dragged into the mental ward with a strait-jacket on, though. Yes, I'm going to have to agree there. Reviews and suggestions are a VERY good cure for writer's block! Ack, I've been huggled AGAIN! Huggles can cure anyone who's feeling down! Except for maybe the Uchiha brothers. Sasuke is always getting glomped but he never lightens up. Well, whatever, you made me feel better! Thank you and review again!

Kayo-chan- Yay for Killua! Lotsa people seem to like him. I'll update soon! Thank you and review again!

hakia seana- Just cuz Oro called Sasuke 'kun' doesn't mean that he likes him! At least, that's what Oro always calls Sasuke in the show so I just followed that... but I'm sure it's perfectly un-pedophilic. Killua is fun! Rinku is a monkey with yo-yo's. He stole Killua's yo-yo's! Stole them! Stooole them! Eh yeah, I bs-ed the whole Akatsuki base and everything cuz i don't know a think about it at all. The game was all a product of my crazed mind as well. Lol, i choke on cough drops ALL the time! They are easy to choke on, aren't they? I was planning on a couple female Akatuki members, but I don't see any way to introduce them. You see, all of the Akatsuki members are just characters taken from other places, and there is a big lack of female characters that I like. That's why I ended up with these particular male characters everywhere. I'll tell you a secret though... the head of my Akatsuki will be a girl, no doubts there. Not sure if I'll introduce any of the other girls though. Hiei? Why, what happened to Hiei? Did he die again? Hiei is so cool, he hibernates. Kurama is cool too. But Itachi beats them all into the ground awesomeness-wise! Go Itachi! W00t!

BlackWindKaze- Thank you for the feedback. I was a little worried about how fast I was taking my plot along. Review again!

Secrets Shared

"Now what." Shikamaru said hopelessly. It wasn't a question. Its real meaning was, _'How can things get any worse?'_

Kakashi and Neji were both silent, brooding on the hopelessness of the situation. Kakashi was reflecting on his wrong choice to not inform Tsunade of what kind of mission he was embarking on. Neji… well, who knows what was going on in Neji's head?

'_Well, no point in thinking about something that can't be changed…' _thought Kakashi. _'First things first.'_

"Ok."

The sudden sound brought Shikamaru and Neji back to reality. They looked to their teacher for hope, guidance, that type of good stuff. They expected him to utter words like, 'Let's storm Orochimaru's compound and get our teammates back! Onward, soldiers!' Or something to that extent. They did not expect him to say what he did say.

"We're going back to Konoha."

Stunned silence.

"We cannot face Orochimaru by ourselves. As your teacher, I do not want to lose anymore of my students in a foolhardy mission with very little chance of success."

Neji swallowed. "But..." he said uncertainly.

"You must understand, Neji, we can do nothing. All of us here… teamwork is nothing compared to all the forces of the Sound-nins."

"We went up against Itachi and Kisame." Put in Shikamaru accusingly.

"It was supposed to be a quick hit-and-run. I underestimated those two drastically and I don't want to make the same mistake again. We cannot help Akima. The only thing left to do is to get some ANBU teams out there. We might even be able to get some hunter-nins on the job."

"But…"

"No buts. This mission is off. We're going back. You are both still practically genin. These people… Itachi, Kisame, Orochimaru, even Kabuto to a certain extent… way past your and my level. Now, we should go before Orochimaru decides to go back on our cease-fire."

Kakashi stood up and jumped a few trees away, expecting his students to follow. When they didn't, he glared back.

"I'm telling you, there's nothing we can do. We should hurry to get help."

Shikamaru looked up suddenly. "There is a way."

Neji and Kakashi turned to look at him, curious.

"It's really far-fetched." Shikamaru said, shrugging his shoulders. "But it could work."

"Say it." Said Kakashi, with serious doubts running through his mind.

Shikamaru told them. They didn't like it.

With Lee, Sasuke, and Naruto

They all sat chained uncomfortably to different walls inside a dark and cold room. The only light that was visible was from the cracks around the steel door, and even that was dim. Naruto squinted at Lee who sat across from him.

"Hey, Fuzzy Eyebrows."

"Naruto?"

"You didn't happen to see how you got here, did you?"

"No, they blindfolded me… and I was completely lost even before they found me, so I don't even have any gauge of the distance from anywhere."

"Same here."

There was silence for a while.

"You awake, Sasuke-baka?"

"…dobe."

"Don't call me that! What do you think they brought us here for?"

"I don't know, baka."

"Grrr…"

With Orochimaru

"Which one do you think we should start with, Orochimaru-sama?" Kabuto asked, watching the three boys from a TV screen. "Maybe Sasuke, you did intend to use him as an experiment before we discovered those other scrolls."

"I intended to use Sasuke as my next body switch, not for what I am planning now." Said Orochimaru, drumming his fingers lightly on his desk while his other hand supported his chin. His eyes narrowed at the moving figures on the screen.

"Since we found those scrolls, there's no need for you to switch your body anymore, you're right." Kabuto replied, the light reflecting from his glasses eerily.

"There's no need to rush. Those genin cannot possibly break out of there. We should save them for later, when they are needed."

"Yes, Orochimaru-sama. In the meantime, what should be done?"

"Well… I think it's time to pay a few people back…" Orochimaru hissed, his yellow eyes flicking dangerously. "Uchiha Itachi and the Akatsuki will be first, naturally… it's a shame that Sarutobi-sensei has already moved on… I would have liked to repay him too… Then, perhaps, gain the Kyubi child's power… or Konoha… and surely then, Tsunade-hime for refusing to heal me when she had the chance…"

"That's a hard hit list, Orochimaru-sama." Said Kabuto as he dutifully wrote it down. "How do you plan to accomplish this? Kimimaro has not recovered, Sasuke is not completely a puppet, Tayuya, Sakon, and Kidoumaru are all too weak to be of much use… and of course, Jiroubo…"

Orochimaru chuckled, an eerie sound that echoed around the dark, damp room. "Well he served his purpose… the dark chakra that he molded from my Cursed Seal healed my arms… truly a helpful tool…"

Kabuto smirked in return. "Anyone who has a Cursed Seal can now be used to either heal you or simply boost your chakra levels. The more you take, the stronger you get. Jiroubo was the first… now the others are afraid. There's a long list… Tayuya, Sakon, Kidoumaru, Kimimaro… and of course, Sasuke-kun and Anko."

"And if I ever run out, all I have to do is find more subjects… This is eternal life, Kabuto." Orochimaru grinned. Kabuto smiled back. He was happy to simply serve his master. He needed nothing else.

With Akima

"Where are we going?" whimpered Akima. She was very well aware of what kind of pain and suffering Itachi was able to cause. I mean, you would be crazy if you weren't at least a little bit afraid of Itachi.

"…" Itachi was definitely in a surly mood, not gracing her with an answer.

"…" Akima let herself be dragged along, through endless numbers of doors and twists and turns until she was somehow transported into Itachi's Dracula-style room. Itachi shoved her in unceremoniously and slammed the door with enough force to break it off its hinges and smack it into the opposite wall of the corridor outside. With a sad little creak, it tipped over and fell into a thousand pieces.

Akima gulped nervously.

Itachi, completely ignoring the fact that he needed a new door and still completely emotionless, stared at her.

Akima shifted a little and studied her shoes as if they were the most interesting things in the world. Under his scrutiny, she had lost the ability to speak and think. No plans, no ways to sguiggle out of this bad situation presented themselves to her completely frozen mind.

"Akima." The simple word was worse than any insult or rebuke. It was said coldly, demanding an answer. Akima visibly flinched, expecting to be interrogated, maybe even hit.

But Itachi did not follow up with anything. In fact, he closed his foreboding red eyes and seemed to be pondering something. Akima fiddled with her fingers and waited. After what seemed like millennia, Itachi opened his eyes again and spoke.

"Akima, are you from Konoha?" Akima opened her mouth but was interrupted before she could speak.

"I can tell if you're lying." The Sharingan glowed warningly. "There will be consequences if you do so."

Akima opened her mouth again, closed it, opened it again and took a deep breath. "No." she exhaled.

Itachi was silent. "Are you a spy?"

"No." _'Not lying… for once…' _Itachi thought.

"Are you planning any way to escape from here?"

"No." _'Not so far, anyways…' _added Akima silently.

"Why not?" Itachi asked, curiosity creeping into his voice. After all, she had tried so hard to do so before.

"I haven't figured out a way yet."

Itachi nodded. "How did you break the chakra string?"

"I chopped it off using Kisame's sword."

Itachi seemed a bit taken aback, but quickly recovered. Last question.

"How do you know so much about everyone?"

Akima bit her lip and fiddled with her fingers, wishing more than anything that there was a hole she could disappear into. Unfortunately, no holes were available and she said nothing.

"Answer." Itachi seemed really angry. He was so tense that Akima could hear his teeth grating inside his mouth. Now that was weird, because his face and voice betrayed nothing.

"…" '_I can't tell. What the hell should I do? He would never believe the truth anyway. He'll kill me. That's right, he's a psycho murderer.'_

Flashback

"You are not even worth killing. Foolish little brother, if you wish to kill me… hate me, detest me, and survive pathetically. Run. Run and cling to life."

"Starting now, I will stab you with a sword for 72 hours. How long will your mind be able to withstand this?"

"You are weak. Why are you weak? Because you lack hatred."

End Flashback

"Akima…" All at once, Itachi realized something. Akima was no longer staring at the floor. She was glaring at him with all the hatred one could muster. To say the least, Itachi was shocked.

"You're an asshole, you know that?" Akima said.

"…I do know. However… you must answer. You cannot keep important secrets like that when you are staying in the Akatsuki compound."

"You keep secrets." Akima stated accusingly.

Itachi closed his eyes. "Mine are not important. They are none of your business."

"Then neither are mine!" Akima snarled. Itachi looked up and saw the beginnings of yellow seep into her eyes. The next second, she was clutching her head and uttered a deep groan. With a sudden loss of balance, she fell to her hands and knees on the floor.

"You still have your demon seal locked." Itachi said, kneeling beside her and placing a hand on her head cautiously. "Attempting to activate it is not advisable."

Akima growled. "…wasn't _trying _to…"

"Control your emotions."

"Don't tell me what to do!" Akima hissed as another sharp sting of pain made its way through her head.

"I'm just trying to help. Calm down and it will go away." Akima tried to control her breathing as her arms shook. It felt like there was a drill going through her head.

"Is it working?" His arm had wrapped itself around her shoulders to steady her slowly rocking form.

"No!" Akima snapped, feeling twinge after twinge of pain.

"That's because you're not calming down."

"Shut up! I know!" she said exasperatedly. She felt close to crying. A migraine this bad did not exist.

"Don't yell. It will make it worse."

"I know…" She could hear the rush of blood pounding next to her eyes. Her vision was going bleary.

Akima closed her eyes, attempting to relax. He let her sit there for a while until he began to get impatient.

"Better yet?" He poked her head.

"Bug off." Akima said, but her voice no longer held malice. She opened her eyes slowly and took a deep breath before letting it all out.

"I suggest a compromise on our dilemma." Said Itachi, not moving from his position that Akima had just noticed was very awkward.

"Ok…"

"You tell me how you know so much about everyone, and I will tell you one of my secrets."

"Then, will you tell me why you killed the Uchiha clan?" Akima jumped up excitedly.

"…Any secret but that one." Said Itachi, also rising to his feet

"What! That's not fair. How I know about you guys is MY biggest secret."

"Too bad. Pick another."

"Fine… How about… what you're saving your money for?"

"…"

"Oh c'mon!" Akima smacked Itachi's head lightly. "I promise I won't tell anybody."

"Alright. You tell first."

Akima opened her mouth, then immediately shut it. She glared suspiciously at Itachi. "Why don't _you _go first?" she asked as sweetly as possible.

"I will tell you, don't worry. Don't you trust me?"

"…No."

"Well, you have to."

"When you put it that way, I don't trust you even more!"

There followed several seconds of silence.

"Alright. I'll tell first." Said Itachi, sighing. "I'm using my money to support my foolish little brother. Happy now?"

"Wow..." Akima sighed and stared off into space. The next second she regained all her energy. "You're so nice! I always wondered how Sasuke and Naruto were able to pay for their homes and food and stuff when they didn't have jobs." Akima paused. "But why would you do that… didn't you-"

Itachi cut her off. "One secret only. And I am not nice."

"Yes you are!"

"Am not."

"Are."

"Not. I won't participate in a childish game like this. Now, fulfill your end of the bargain."

"Are. To make a long story short, I'm not from this world. I was able to view your world from mine."

"Not. That's it?"

"Are. Yup."

"...That was simple."

"Ha! You forgot to say 'not'! Therefore, it has been decided that you're nice. I win."

Itachi blinked at her. "...Exactly how old are you?" he said cocking an eyebrow.

Then, running feet could be heard coming swiftly down the hallway. A moment later, Killua jumped over the remains of the door into the room, excited.

"Ne, ne, Itachi, Akima, are you done talking?" Akima looked expectantly over at Itachi who gave a brief nod.

Killua looked over at Akima and grinned happily. "Your new friend has arrived! You and Itachi should go meet him!"

Akima raised an eyebrow. "…A new friend?"

"Yup! They're going to come out of the room of questioning anytime now so we have to go, c'mon!" and without further ado, Killua grabbed one of Akima and Itachi's hands each and dragged them through the confusing maze of corridors and doors until they had somehow reached the rotating room again. Out of the corner of her eye, Akima stared at Itachi, scrutinizing the small smile that was barely existing on his face. Raising an eyebrow she returned her attention to the door that was slowly creaking open in front of her.

'_Did Killua replace Sasuke, Itachi?' _she thought before the person who appeared before her blew all other thoughts from her mind.

The red-haired Sand-nin stepped into the room, scowling, with his arms crossed in a pout across his chest. He glared around at everyone, his gaze alighting first on Akima. There was a flicker of recognition but nothing else. Next, Itachi. The tension grew and Gaara gave an infinitely long, cold stare right into the crimson eyes. However, the moment passed and Gaara gave a merely curious stare at Killua.

"Hi, I'm Killua! You're Gaara, right?" Killua said, jumping up to grin happily into the evil-ish sand nin's face. Gaara seemed a bit taken aback, but recovered and gave a small nod. "Cool! Hey, you're a demon like Akima, right? What type are you?"

Gaara slowly turned from Akima back to Killua again. Killua's cheery attitude was unnerving him. He was way too much like…

"Shukaku."

"Ne, ne, that's awesome! I wish I was one…" Killua sighed, totally oblivious to Gaara's shocked glance.

"…Why?"

Killua laughed and said, "Isn't it _obvious_? You're so lucky!"

Gaara went completely still at the last words. His mind drained away, and he couldn't speak, couldn't retort that Killua must be even more deranged than he was if he thought that he believed that being a demon was a lucky thing to be.

Killua, upon seeing the blank expression on Gaara's face, began to count on his fingers, listing off the attributes of a demon container.

"Regeneration, power, heightened senses, special abilities, boosts when you're in a tight spot, plenty of strong enemies coming after you for you to crumple into the ground, a partner that will stick by you until you die, someone to talk to whenever you want…"

Akima and Gaara had never thought that having a voice in your head that wouldn't go away could be a benefit… but everything that Killua had said was true. However, the Shukaku was a little insane and it wasn't exactly a great pleasure to talk to it. Example:

Gaara: Hi Shukaku.

Shukaku: Kill him! Spill his blood! Rip his throat out! Killkillkillkill nownownow!

So you see, Gaara didn't talk to Shukaku very much. He avoided even listening to it as much as possible, because usually he would end up grabbing some random villager that was looking at him funny and playing tug-of-war in-between two sand arms until the person broke into two hunks of bloody flesh.

And he couldn't say that he didn't enjoy it. Heck, who doesn't like that feeling of power? The knowledge that people never dare to look at you funny again? That someone could make one wrong move and end up looking remarkably like something that had gone through a meat processor?

And this was what made Gaara loony. Power did it. Sasuke was loony too. Because of his brother, right? Itachi's gosh darn fault, right?

Wrong. Sasuke's power obsession did it. Well, since that particular obsession was caused by Itachi, it kind of IS Itachi's fault after all. And what made Itachi do it?

Testing his power? BS.

…

At this point in time, no one really knows except Itachi himself.

And, since Itachi is so awesomely mysterious, we're going to leave it at that and get back to reality. At least, the illusion of reality. I wish this story was reality. Loony is a funny word.

Itachi suddenly remembered something, letting Killua go off to entertain Gaara, though everyone knows that that is impossible without blood involved. He turned to Akima.

"How's your wrist?"

Akima held it up, smirking. "Why, it's just as damaged as a few hours ago, thanks for asking." Itachi motioned for her to follow him and walked briskly away.

"Aren't you going to report to the council and tell them I'm an alien or something?" Akima asked innocently.

"No." The walk continued in silence.

Insert Scene Break Here

"What's wrong?" drawled Shuya, red and purple eyes half-lidded. Itachi gestured at Akima, who waved her throbbing wrist around in the air, causing the splint to wobble dangerously. She flinched slightly as Shuya took her arm and gently squeezed the areas around the break, determining how large it was.

Akima noted with some discomfort that his fingers were ice cold. Then again, the break was pretty overheated, as wounds generally are, so it was a nice feeling really. Except that his fingers were really, really, cold…

She suddenly noted that her arm from the elbow down had gone completely numb and frozen. Frowning, she attempted to wiggle her fingers, but to no avail. She glanced from Shuya to her hand to Itachi, who stood patiently waiting.

Shuya spoke with indifference. "The chakra string's burn has become an infection. I am trying to cool it off. The wrist break will be dealt with afterwards."

Itachi's eyes narrowed, but he made no other action.

Akima watched with mounting tension as the red-purple gashes on her wrist simply melted away as the coldness did. As soon as they were completely gone, Shuya very, very carefully took her hand and forearm with his own and held them up a bit. He seemed to be considering something.

"What color are my shoes, Akima-san?" Confused, Akima looked down at his shoes and Shuya stuffed the broken ends of her bone together, sealing them in one white-hot flash of pure agony. After Akima was done gasping and hyperventilating and such, she had to be grateful to him. It was an age-old doctor's trick, distract the patient and just get the job over with when they weren't expecting it. But she doubted any of the doctors of her old world could heal a bone so quickly and efficiently.

And her wrist was definitely all better. She rotated it all around and flexed her fingers experimentally, rejoicing in the newfound power of movement. She smiled at Shuya, who didn't seem to notice, and thanked him profusely.

However, she wasn't quite done yet.

"Wait, you still have to take an eye exam." Said Shuya as she and Itachi turned to leave. Akima sighed as Itachi's eyebrows rose questioningly. Shuya ignored him.

"Just follow the little ball on the top of this pen." Said Shuya as he moved the pen about, Akima dutifully eyeing it wherever it went. She didn't notice his other hand forming little blue flames behind his back. At least, she didn't notice until those cold, flaming fingers slammed themselves into her stomach.

"What the?" said Shuya, his eyes for once narrowing and actually paying attention. You see, normally, when the Goguoukaiin (Five-Element Unsealer) is used on a demon's seal, the victim will generally be knocked out as the chakra counterattacks the symptoms of the Gogyo Fuuin (Five-Element Seal), thus returning the demon container's chakra use back to normal. Instead, Akima winced while clutching her stomach. Plus, the chakra had simply dissipated into the air and not gone inside the seal.

"Her seal is on her back." Itachi explained, tracing the spiral pattern with a finger through the back of her shirt. Akima looked over her shoulder at him for a long moment, and then shrugged, losing interest. Itachi slammed his fingers into the seal and caught her before she hit the ground, out cold.

Shuya merely blinked and acknowledged him with a slight nod before turning his back and scribbling on a clipboard, the signal for them to leave. Itachi took the hint and left.

Now, he encountered a slight problem. You see, Akima was snoring lightly in his arms and he was under the impression that she would not wake up for quite some time… and he had not been informed of where her room was located within the vast facility of the Akatsuki organization. Plus, he wanted to get back to his chocolate milk in the kitchen before someone drank it.

With no options left, he ran up to his Dracula-ripped-off room and stuffed her into his bed before running off to save his drink. Which, by the way, Killua had finished off quite some time ago.

Picture this… Itachi likes chocolate milk almost as much as Naruto loves ramen.

He spent the next 3 hours chasing Killua around the compound, much to the younger one's hilarity. Itachi, however, was dead serious about his chocolate milk revenge. Well, not completely… if he had been dead serious, Killua would have already died a billion painful deaths.

ANYWAYS, getting back on track…

Akima woke up in an eerily familiar bloody red and black room. Needless to say, she was a little freaked out. Wouldn't you, if you suddenly woke up in an exact duplicate of Dracula's mansion? Feeling the need to exit the room very quickly, she tried one of the doors and discovered a closet filled with….

Akatsuki cloaks and net shirts.

'_At least I'm still in the Akatsuki…' _she thought, closing the door and trying another. Inside was a red and black bathroom. Yep, the shower curtain was black, the walls were red and black tiled… the sink was red… you get the picture. And there were purple nail polish bottles and hair bands.

Suddenly, Akima knew in exactly whose room she was in. Who else in the Akatsuki wore these accessories and still managed to look so absolutely awesome? Itachi, of course.

After snooping around a bit more, she left that room too and proceeded to the last opening. It led out into the hallway of…

THE CURSED CORRIDOR OF MANY MANY DOORS! (I just had a bowl of pudding. Sugar highs rule!)

"AAAAAAAHHHHHH!" screamed Akima.

To the nameless people of the Akatsuki council!

"How long until we can begin the plan?" said one cloaked member.

"It all depends on when we can acquire the last demon." Said another.

"Before, there were only two known existing demons. We _have_ two. Even though the girl is not the one we originally sought after, why shouldn't we simply begin it now?"

"The output of the plan would be even greater with a 3rd demon in our power. Imagine the destruction!"

"Agreed. With all three, our power would be unstoppable."

"But there is still the problem of how to control them."

"Easily solved. I trust everyone knows of Orochimaru's famed cursed seal?"

There were scattered murmurs of outrage as people shuffled uncomfortably.

"If we can discover the secret of it, think of the control we could have over anyone who has been cursed. Including demons."

"We don't know that for sure. A demon has never been bitten before. There may be side effects, or in the worst-case scenario it may not work at all."

"Well, when Orochimaru is captured, he will reveal all of its secrets… The Uchiha will get it out of him willingly."

Author's Notes……

W00t.

Ok, not good with romantic stuff… and seriously lacking in the willpower to write it. As you can probably tell, I glazed and/or skipped over all the chances for 'sweet' moments Like, I made Akima snore when Itachi was carrying her… he 'stuffed' her into bed instead of gently laying her out and all that (pukepukepuke). BUT, I did put SOMETHING in there for the people who might have been looking for it… happy? And I had to fight very hard to keep my hand from touching the backspace key. SO... yeah.

FINALLY starting on something here! From now on, things are bound to get more confuzzling. To give you an idea… there's Shikamaru, Kakashi, and Neji's plan… and then there's Orochimaru's plan, Akatsuki's plan, Akima's plan, Itachi's plan (which DOES differ from Akatsuki's) Lee and Naruto's plan, and last, but certainly not least, Sasuke-baka's plan. They are all different and are affected by each other… which makes this very hard to write by the way! So review… and I'll be inspired and write faster!

I posted a strange, random fic called Rabid Fangirls. It has major Sakura-bashing... and was written in an hour when I was on sugar high. Not recommended for those who like Sakura. At all. Go ahead, read it and review it too. Definitely not a serious fic.

We must stop Naruto from coming to Cartoon Network peoples! They will maul it! MAUL IT! Save Naruto, Itachi, Sasuke-baka etc. etc. (and all your favorite characters) from maulation (I made a word) by signing the following petition. Since links don't show up too well... We will attempt to cheat! (without spaces) It is... the petition site dot com slash take action slash one zero five three seven nine four two eight

Go there!


	15. Jail Break

W00t for my reviewers! Thank you everyone! Drunk Lee is awesome! So are Gaara and Kimimaro! I love crazy people! ...Itachi?

Dragon Man 180- Lol, poor Sasuke! I'm really gonna start hammering on him soon. And Killua will be coming since so many people seem to love him. How would a Killua v. Oro work out? Hmm... I'm not sure. I'm going to have to say that Oro would probably win, b/c Killua is rather young and inexperienced, yet powerful, while Oro is practically the opposite. Killua would definitely put up a good fight, though. Thank you and review again!

mrasdfghj- Yeah, the Shukaku is a little funky. And I like putting in those short little pointless conversations. W00t for crazy demons! ...and Sakura-bashing.

XoXSilverDragonXoX- Ehehe... No! No romance! Itachi is mine! MINE! Keep away from him Akima! (Ignore me when I'm ranting. Which is all the time. So just ignore me all the time, that makes everything so much easier.) Itachisweetie does not compute. I'm going to have to shove in some bloody gory stuff somewhere to make up for that. I really had a writer's block on that for the longest time, and it came out crappy, but whatever. Too tired to care at this time. I will probably go into Uchiha massacre... I have an idea. But we'll just see if it works out. Btw, about the Naruto on Cartoon Network thing, I heard that they were going to show it on adult swim from someone. Is that true? Did the petition actually work? Or am I just getting my hopes up?

Inuyasha-gal-97- Yes! Down with Cartoon Network's kid-safe crap! We want the GORE! At least, I do. And I want non-stupid dubbings. Which I know is impossible. But one can hope.

ArrowOfHikaru- Thank you! Those 3 seem to be the most popular right now, Akima, Itachi, and Killua. I will do my best to be write better!

ero-jounin- Eh, you've never seen Itachi's purple nail polish? Kisame and Orochimaru have it too. I'm wondering if it's an Akatsuki thing or a bad guy thing or what...

Nitouryuu- w00t for sugar highs! I don't have one right now though... tired...zzzzz... Here;s your update! Thank you!

ThE BiTtEr PrInCeSs- Yes, yes, you were the ONLY one to notice that fat paragraph about some MYSTERIOUS person who gave Sasuke money. Genius! (bows) Um, I got the chocolate milk idea when I was drinking chocolate milk... and yes, i do love chocolate milk. In fact, I think i'll get some right now. Thank you and come again!

Hiira- Yeah, I realize that Akima is hard to describe. You see, she's alot like me... (wasn't supposed to be, but it just happened since I put maybe half the story in first person point of view) and real people are a little hard to describe in just a few words. I think so anyways, don't know about you. Thank you and come again!

Kayo-Chan- Yes, I do! Romance is hard enough for me to read, let alone write! Here's your update! Thank you and come again!

hakia seana- Everyone loves Killua! I don't know why, but they do. Oh well, that's cool... just another useless side character becomes a main one. Itachi can SO beat up Hiei. Maybe. The Jagan eye might make it challenging. We'll just call it a tie otherwise we'll start trying to scratch each other's eyes out. Or maybe we should just blow up our school. That sounds better. Got plutonium? Nooo, Oro is NOT a perv! I mean, sometimes Kakashi calls Sasuke 'kun' too! And.. well we all know Kakashi's a perv, but not in THAT way. I'm making the situation worse, aren't I. I'll stop now. Gaara!

Altariel Eldalote- Wow, this is the first time someone has ever called me sweet. No, not true... wait, yes it is. Wow. I'm not sure about how big of a part Gaara will have. Probably not to the extent of Itachi and Akima... most likely on the same level as Killua, Naruto, and Sasuke... kind of a little more than secondary characters. He will have his shining moments. And Gaara was SOOO cool... but then he ate Lee's arm and leg in the Chuunin Exam and I was pissed at him for that cuz Lee is just... in the springtime of his life... yeah. Oh yes, things will start getting very hectic soon. Very very crazy... Ack! I've been huggled TWICE! Now what's going to get me to stop writing? Thank you and review again!

Michi-chan- Here's your update! Thank you! I know how you feel about being too lazy to review... sometimes I get that too.

Jail Break

With Kakashi, Shikamaru, and Neji

"I don't like it." Said Kakashi in response to Shikamaru's plan.

"Neither do I." Acquiesced Shikamaru. "But it's the only thing that could work. And in the long run, it could really benefit Konoha."

"It's more likely to brand us." Said Kakashi. "A temporary alliance with the Akatsuki? The chances of your plan succeeding are practically zero."

"I know. But if we unite with the Akatsuki against Orochimaru…"

"What makes you think the Akatsuki will even consider your offer?"

Shikamaru shook his head. "That's the vital piece missing. Our best bet would be information about his whereabouts or his connections… what he controls and who are his other enemies… But as of now, we don't have anything like that. We'll have to figure it out somehow."

"So, instead of barging in on Orochimaru's compound, which, by the way, is probably very well hidden and pretty much impossible to find, we're going to… what? Spy on him?" Kakashi was skeptical.

"…Sasuke, Naruto, Lee… You have to admit, those are some of the top genin of Konoha. We have to count on them to figure something out, and get back to us."

"Your master plan is grounded on the hope that someone else will make a plan."

"Yup."

"We have no means of communication. The walkie-talkies have lost contact…"

"We have to be patient. Enjoy boring times, and hope something happens. Give it a couple days, and have Neji scan the area three times every day. If nothing happens, we go back." Neji, upon hearing his name, perked up a little.

Kakashi shrugged. "Fine. A couple days."

Shikamaru looked up at the clouds. _'We're counting on you, Naruto, Sasuke, Lee…troublesome bakas.'_

With said genin

"Grr…" Naruto struggled fruitlessly with his metal bonds. "These stupid chains have some sort of chakra-draining crap on them!"

"Naruto-kun… do you remember my fight with Gaara in the Chuunin Exam?" said Lee, winking broadly.

"Yeah…" said Naruto. "But instead of talking about that think about a way to get us out of here!"

"I am!" hissed Lee. "Don't you remember, Naruto?"

"Yes, I remember!" said Naruto, pouting. "Geez, how dumb do you think I am?"

"Well, there's your plan." Said Lee, flashing a white grin.

"Eh?" said Naruto, scratching his head. "I don't understand…"

"Well…" Lee tried to think of a way to make Naruto recall his special power without saying it in a way that eavesdroppers could understand. "Remember… when I really started beating him up? Remember what happened? To me?"

"Ummm…" Naruto trailed off. Then his blue eyes lit up and went round. "Ohhhhhh! You mean…"

Lee quickly shushed him. 'They don't know that' he mouthed silently at Naruto, who nodded, finally understanding.

'_Wow, it's a good thing we have Fuzzy Eyebrows with us!' _thought Naruto excitedly. _'I get it. He can open inner gates or something… He got really really powerful without using chakra… so he can get out of here with no problem if he does that. What's he waiting for? I guess until night or something, when _they _aren't paying as much attention. Wow, he's good…'_

Sasuke sat emotionlessly on his side of the room, saying nothing, thinking nothing.

'_The only thing to do now is wait…' _thought Lee, leaning back against the cold stone wall. There weren't very many ninjas who didn't use chakra. Lee was one of them. He was also one of the few special people who could open 'inner gates'. As a result, Lee was really their only chance of getting out of the evil chakra-sucking prison.

Night fell. Outside, the shadows grew as all the cute fuzzy animals and chirping birdies went back to their homes and families to enjoy a good night's rest. The nocturnal animals started to awaken, blinking their all-seeing eyes and clambering out of their burrows and tree roosts.

"Oi, Naruto-kun." Lee whispered, his voice echoing slightly in the darkness.

"What?" Naruto replied grumpily. All three of them were chained by their wrists to the wall in such a way that they couldn't even lie down properly. Predictably, none of them were very comfortable.

"Ready?"

Naruto visibly perked up. "What can I do to help?"

"Not much. Is Sasuke-kun alright?"

Naruto gave a long stare at Sasuke's hunched form. _'He's brooding again, stupid bastard.'_

"Sasuke-baka!"

Sasuke did not even stir. Naruto looked back at Lee and gave a shrug. "He's probably just tired…" the words didn't sound convincing even to Naruto himself. Lee cast a worried look at the dark figure and sighed.

"Alright then." Lee started concentrating all of his energy inside him, willing it to break the chains that bound him. As the glowing green wisps of energy started to swirl, Lee increasingly darkened, the veins popping out of his skin. In a few seconds, the entire wall had crunched away into particles of dust and Lee appeared in a rush of wind, staring off into the dark forest. The rain was coming down in torrents, cutting off all minor sounds except the rushing of water. Then, without wasting anymore precious time, he cut the chakra-draining bonds of both Sasuke and Naruto in one fluid motion.

"Now! Someone will be coming!" Naruto jumped to his feet and glanced at Sasuke, expecting him to do the same. Instead, the Uchiha rose to his feet very slowly, his face shadowed by his dark hair.

"Hurry up Sasuke!" Naruto hissed, jumping over to him and grabbing his wrist, attempting to tug the boy along behind him. But, Sasuke stood his ground and refused to budge.

"Naruto, Lee… go." Sasuke muttered darkly. "I'm not going back. I never want to see you again. Get out."

Naruto just stared, still limply holding Sasuke's wrist. Then… he punched Sasuke in the face. Hard.

"You IDIOT! Stop being so stupid!"

Sasuke looked up, his cheek a burning red, crimson eyes hardened into menacing slits. "I meant what I said. I'd rather not have to kill you." His voice was low, laced with warning.

"Naruto, we have to go!" Lee yelled, the sound of pounding feet already able to be heard over the rush of the storm. "We can come back for him with Kakashi! Shikamaru can think of something!"

Naruto seethed with anger at his best friend. "You…" he felt himself being pulled away by Lee at inhuman speed. Sasuke's dark form was gone in a matter of seconds. _'You… baka… You'd better wait for us, you bastard!'_

Lee was off and running, faster than any human eye could follow.

As Sasuke was surrounded by battalions of enemy ninja, he did feel it necessary to question himself. The past few days, he had been doing some major thinking. He had already known that his true goal in life was to avenge the Uchiha clan, to kill his brother. And he had tried. Several times, in fact. And yet, each time, he never got any closer.

This was to be expected, really. Uchiha Itachi was probably the most feared ninja of all the ninja world. He would have to be insanely powerful. It just made sense. To top it all off, Itachi was older than Sasuke, and would always be older, and would therefore always be stronger. Time does not change for anyone. The only logical time that Sasuke could beat his brother would be when they both got old. Itachi would be more old and brittle than Sasuke at a certain point, and THEN Sasuke could beat the crud out of him.

However, that was a really long time from now. And Sasuke needed to get a life. To surpass someone who is already considered to be so powerful as to be god-like in less time than the other took to become that way… one would have to be crazy.

And Sasuke was. So crazy that he would do anything for it. So crazy as to base his life off of dead people's silent and/or non-existent pleas for vengeance. So crazy as to threaten his friend and tell him off for trying to help him escape.

Because Sasuke wanted to stay right where he was; in Orochimaru's compound. Because here, there was one of the legendary sennin who just so happened to hate Itachi's guts.

To Sasuke's crazed mind, Orochimaru would make a powerful partner. They could already talk through their minds. At least, Orochimaru could talk to him. He wasn't quite sure if he could get into Oro's head.

If Orochimaru would either help him become stronger or actually help him in the actual killing of Itachi, life would be good.

Sasuke started to do the famous Dr. Evil laugh. "Mwahahaha… Mwahahahaha…" yeah, you know how it goes.

Far far away, Itachi was sipping a new glass of chocolate milk contentedly. When Akima's scream echoed around the Akatsuki compound, he wondered if it was worth getting up to go and see whether she was alive or not. That chocolate milk was really, really good…

In the end, he decided that Akima's life was worth a little bit more than his drink. _'Just a smidgen more.' _He assured himself mentally as he briskly walked towards his room where he had left her.

"What's wrong now?" he asked when he neared the shuddering form of Akima on the ground.

"Too… many… doors…" she grunted, hands over her head.

He squatted down on the floor next to her and poked the back of her head experimentally. "Why are there so many doors?" she asked, whining.

"Because this is the residential wing. All members and guests of the Akatsuki live here when they aren't on missions."

"…Is my room here too?"

"Yes."

Akima groaned and rolled over. She suddenly found herself looking straight into Itachi's crimson eyes.

Blink. Blinkblink.

"Let's go see what Gaara and Killua are doing." Itachi said, completely ignoring the odd surprised expression on her face.

"…'kay."

'_I wonder what that was…' _thought Akima as she padded softly down the hall after Itachi.

They found Gaara and Killua pigging out in the kitchen. Apparently, Killua had been attempting to teach Gaara how to make cookies. Unfortunately, Gaara had had no experience cooking whatsoever and had produced some very strange-looking and strange-smelling piles of… cookie-like substance.

"Try one!" said Killua, thrusting one of the lumps into Akima's face. "You too, Itachi!"

Akima and Itachi took the offered chunks, doubtfully eyeing them. Akima looked from the 'cookie' to Gaara's slightly hopeful face, then back again. _'There's no way I can refuse and live with it.' _She thought, slowly bringing it to her mouth and taking a small bite. Her eyes widened.

"It's good." She said, smiling brightly at Gaara, who gave a kind of half-smile in return. Itachi raised an eyebrow and nibbled at his.

"Not… bad." Said Itachi thoughtfully, glaring at Akima, who sweatdropped. _'That liar, trying to be nice to the Shukaku container. This is the most disgusting thing I have ever tasted.'_

"We made plenty, so have as much as you want!" said Killua, who shoved a plateful of 'cookies' towards the two of them, which was hastily backed away from.

"Oh no thanks, I wouldn't want to be too greedy…" said Akima quickly, waving them off and running out the door, quickly followed by Itachi.

"Wonder what's wrong with them?" said Killua as he bit into a normal-shaped cookie, winking at Gaara, who nodded in return and swept the disfigured cookies into the trash before taking a 'good' cookie for himself.

"Moochers get what they deserve, don't they?"

Back with Shika and co.

"The rain has stopped." Kakashi informed Shikamaru and Neji from his vantage point in a tree.

"Really." Shikamaru said sarcastically.

It was early morning. It had rained all night, leaving the ground mushy and muddy and making the three ninjas very, very miserable as the best shelter they could find was underneath a tree's large roots. Neji had it worst off, as he had to periodically scan the surrounding area for miles with his Byakugan for life signs. So far, there was nothing out of the ordinary. So far.

"I guess I'll check again." Sighed Neji as he performed the necessary hand seals for the Byakugan. When he felt the pressure rise to his eyes, he snapped them open and proclaimed to the world, "Byakugan!" for dramatic effect.

"We know what it is." muttered Shikamaru, who was lying with his hands behind his head in the dry earth under the tree roots.

"I know, but it's a ritual to say the name of this sacred technique." Replied Neji as he scanned the area for any chakra, ignoring Shikamaru's annoyed snort. His eyes widened in surprise.

"Incoming."

Kakashi immediately dropped down from his tree and Shikamaru tumbled out from his resting place.

"Is it them?" said Kakashi.

"Hard to say at this distance. Moving incredibly fast, two people. Strange energy… seems familiar…" Understanding hit Neji with a jolt. "Must be Lee."

"Only two?" Kakashi said, motioning for all of them to start moving to intercept them.

"Yes. Perhaps they were unable to rescue the other."

"Maybe…"

Lee was moving blindingly fast, Naruto simply trying his best to hang on behind him. They had left Orochimaru's compound quite a while ago, but Lee didn't want to take any chances that they were still being followed, so he kept going. Until he heard a familiar voice call out.

"Oi, Lee!"

Lee dashed past Neji before he could stop himself and dug his feet into the ground, plowing up the earth in two trails. He let the energy coursing through his body fade, and fell onto the ground unconscious, utterly spent.

"Naruto! Where's Sasuke?" said Kakashi as he hurriedly checked Lee's life signs. Naruto turned his head to the side and looked off in the distance.

"He didn't want to come." Naruto's voice was devoid of… anything. No happiness, no sadness, not even anger. Just a dead voice stating the facts.

"What?" Kakashi said, his visible eye widening disbelievingly.

"I said, he didn't want to come." That voice again. So un-Naruto.

"He… wouldn't come? He wanted to stay with Orochimaru?" Kakashi whispered. _'Was the Cursed Seal acting up again? Was he forced to stay? Or did he really want to? ... … … Anyway, we have to get him out whether he wants to go or not.'_

Naruto nodded silently, still not meeting anyone's gaze.

"I don't think I fully understand what's going on, but…" Shikamaru cut in. "Naruto, can you tell us where Orochimaru is?"

"Probably."

Shikamaru pulled out a map and a pen. "Mark the approximate area then. Right now, we are right here." He pointed at a spot. Naruto glanced at the sun, then at the map, and circled a small area a few miles to the southeast.

"Ok, now the only thing left to do is to find the Akatsuki. Neji, you're up again." Neji nodded and began jumping up the tree, coming to a rest at the very top.

"Byakugan!"

Shikamaru rolled his eyes and sighed. "Do you see any suspicious looking places?" he shouted out to the dot that was Neji.

"Not really." Neji's voice floated down and they watched as Neji swiveled to and fro as the wind rocked his tree.

"Keep looking. Try farther. They have to be somewhere." Called Kakashi.

Shikamaru looked down at the ground. "This is pointless. The Akatsuki can't be found so easily. They could be miles away or under the sea for all we know. Hyuuga have been on the ANBU search teams before, and _they _haven't found anything."

"This was _your _plan. I told you I didn't like it." Kakashi said.

"I know. Shut up."

Neji searched for a few more minutes, stretching the limits of how far his Byakugan could see. But, there wasn't much out of the ordinary. He wasn't even sure what he was supposed to be looking for. There were mountains, a lake, forest, Konoha in the distance…

He could feel his eyes start twitching as they tired. Staring at the mountain in the lake, he started as a quick flash of chakra appeared, and then quickly disappeared. Hardening his resolve, he stared harder, but nothing showed up again. _'Just the sun's reflection off the lake.' _Still, he couldn't shake the feeling that it was important, but dismissed it as his imagination.

But still… his imagination was better that nothing, right?

"I think we should head towards the lake." Neji called down to the awaiting team members."

"You found something?" Kakashi yelled.

"Maybe. It could be my imagination."

"Better than nothing." Shikamaru drawled and pulled himself to his feet.

"Let's go over there then." Said Kakashi. They all nodded and jumped off.

At the Akatsuki

"ItachiItachiItachi!" Killua ran down the hallway and jumped in front of Itachi and Akima. Gaara followed from behind him a bit more sedately.

"What?" said Itachi. "I'm going to have to start training Akima someday you know."

"Not anymore! New emergency orders from the Akatsuki! Plus, they finally made me a member! Yay!"

"Really, now, good job." Itachi grabbed the slip of paper that Killua was barely holding on to as he danced around excitedly and read it as Akima peeked over his shoulder.

"Eh…." Akima said, eyes becoming wider with each word. "Holy crud. I bet you're happy, Itachi."

Itachi considered it as he packed away the paper into a pocket. "We're leaving. Now."

'_Yep, he's happy.' _Thought Akima as Itachi dragged her at top speed down the hallway, followed by Killua and Gaara.

What the paper said

Mission Objectives:

1) Capture Orochimaru or

1b) Find detailed 'Cursed Seal' information

2) Kill or capture all supporters of Orochimaru

3) Acquire all information on new jutsus, experiments, etc., especially with regards to demons

4) Capture all prisoners for questioning, if possible. Uzumaki Naruto (Kyubi container) should not be harmed and must be captured alive at all costs

5) Once all other objectives have been successfully completed, destroy the compound

The partnerships in this mission are:

Team 1: Itachi (#7)

Akima (rookie)

Team 2: Killua (#10)

Gaara (rookie)

Team 3: Haru (#5)

Kisame (#2)

Team 4: Shuya (#4)

Tora (#8)

And the other people we don't care about right?

Mission will commence immediately.

End what the paper said

"Oi, oi! Shouldn't we wait for the others or something?" Akima said as they burst into the room of questioning.

"Killua and Gaara are right behind us."

"I mean, Kisame and the others..."

"They know what to do."

"...Ok then, whatever you say."

Itachi, Akima, Killua, and Gaara burst out of the genjutsu-created rock wall at the entrance to the Akatsuki all at once. Itachi suddenly stopped, making everyone crash into each other behind him in their hurry to stop as well.

"Again?" he said as he did a jutsu.

"What's wrong?" Akima asked, struggling to free herself from the pile of bodies.

"Someone is watching. I believe it is the same person who was watching us before you jumped in a river... So, I put up a genjutsu." _'It may already be too late... since so many of us burst out of the genjutsu at once... but all that should have been seen was a brief flash of chakra. Unable to be seen at this distance... hopefully...'_

'_Neji? No, can't be. They're not still looking for me, are they?' _Akima thought, twisting around to see if she could spot anyone. However, no one came into view. Her thoughts were interrupted when Itachi poked her head.

"You're not thinking about escaping, are you?" he said, poking the tip of her nose repeatedly.

"Nooooooo..." said Akima, wrinkling her nose at the offending finger. "Not yet, anyway."

"I'll let you know that if you make one wrong move, we're going to be using chakra strings again."

"Nnnnn..." Akima scowled at him. "If my wrist breaks again, it's your fault."

"Actually, it will probably be yours." Itachi smirked at her irritated expression and cuffed her head lightly. "Let's hurry up and go."

Author's Notes: whee. Things are going to really start moving soon. Look forward to it! Btw, I know I've made Sasuke crazy. He is. He just is. And he will soon develop an inner Sasuke. Look forward to that too. 'Til next time, review!

Awesome people: Everyone except the evil pink-hair.


	16. A Sneaking Suspicion

ATTENTION! Please people, I only watch the Naruto anime, which is on the Gaara v. Kimimaro fight right now... so please don't spoil stuff for me by talking about stuff that happens in the manga ahead of that point! I made up EVERYTHING about the Akatsuki in this story. All of it. The members, it's council, it's location... everything. Don't take any of it seriously.

THANK YOU! I LOVE ALL OF YOU! I GOT SO MANY REVIEWS IT'S SCARY! And for once, the lateness was not my fault. Fanfiction wouldn't let me sign in on friday, and then saturday morning and afternoon it wouldn't let me upload. And i tried several hundred times, too. So, sorry!

Review Responses:

XoXSilverDragonXoX- Ah, it's ok about the naruto petition thingie. I kind of figured out a way by Friday. It won't let me use links for some reason… but I cheated them! Ha! Thank you anyways. How come you haven't updated your story in a long time? (sniffles) Jk, jk, I'm sure you have good reasons! I'm kind of losing willpower to write this as well… but I promised myself that I would finish it! Hey, you read this before school? I would never have the willpower to get up earlier than I have to on a school day! How is this possible! Thank you!

Kira- Meow mix! Thank you!

loveable-M- Thank you! You reviewed a lot! I thought I was crazy when I saw how many reviews I had… I was seriously considering whether it was possible that someone's mouse got stuck on the review button… Ah, you like my Ocs? I do too! But, someone told me that they were taking away from the plot so they're not going to show up that much anymore. Maybe just one more big scene for them to shine in.

Dragon Man 180- Sakura, coming back? Confused… where did you get that idea? When Sakura comes back, if she does at all, then I'll be sure to kill her… But I doubt she will for a very long time. Naruto is definitely better off with Hinata, I have to agree. But then I feel sad for Kiba… Lol, I WAS considering making Lee crash into Neji… but then I thought that would have caused a lot of damage to the both of them… (Neji would use kaiten and blow them both to pieces, pretty much) Poor Naruto! Yes, Oro deserves a whole lot of ass-kicking! Itachi would be ecstatic to oblige.

ArrowOfHikaru- Thank you! Hopefully, this chapter will appease your hunger…

hurrahhurrah- …You really have pink hair! (gasps) No, I don't have anything against pink-haired people, it's just Sakura. That's who I was thinking about when I wrote that. Don't be mad! And btw, WHOA, you reviewed A LOT! I can't believe you could actually read my story for 4 hours… I'm… shocked. Thank you thank you thank you thank you… (keeps going on and on and on and on…)

ThE BiTtEr PrInCeSs- Yes, chocolate milk rules! Eh, yeah, Akima is more like a little sister at this point in time… I just can't write romance! (sobs uncontrollably) BUT, I will get there! I must! I promised! Thank you and come again!

mrasdfghj- Thank you! I've officially decided to kill Sakura at the end of the story. Makes for a happy ending, don't you think?

crazy-antman- Lol, yeah, Killua and Haru are crazy. And fun to write. However, Haru won't really show up much anymore… plus, I got someone who told me that my OC's (besides Akima) are taking too much away from the plotline and looking back, I have to agree. So their role will be keyed down a bit.

SkyBlueSunShine- Don't worry, don't worry! Sasuke will only be crazy, he won't be like Sakura. And he's halfway there anyway. I understand what you mean by my OC's playing too big of a role… and you're right. I kind of got carried away. Sorry! So, per your advice, Killua and Haru only have… lessee, one more semi-important part to play, and then they will disappear after the Oro mess is over and done with. Eeh… another Akima and Itachi romance wanter! I'll put some in… (sigh) but not for a bit at least, because we are entering the fight chapters. W00t! Thank you and come again!

Altariel Eldalote- Thank you! I don't know how the cookie part got in there… no idea at all. Must have been on sugar high. XD… You aren't odd! I'm much worse. I'm the one writing about Killua and Gaara making cookies. (sweatdrop) I did see ep 126! And YES, Gaara was awesome! Awesome awesome awesome! Lee was great in 125, as well… God, I have to get Lee drunk in here somehow… I was planning on a killing spree for them already! You read my mind! … And just how did you do that..? (stares suspiciously) Agh, I feel like I'm being BRIBED with all this affection I'm getting! All I have to do is read your reviews to feel happy again… Thank you so much!

Rhythmic- Noooo! That's not what I meant with inner Sasuke! Not at all! What I meant is that Sasuke's going crazy! We all love crazy people, don't we? Well, I do! Eh, I have great characterization? That seems unlikely! Who does? Akima? Akima doesn't even have a personality, she's so random. Based off of me! (wasn't supposed to be, but it happened somehow… that's what I get for writing half the story in 1st pov) Your story is great! I think it's better than mine! You don't have all the dumb little random side stories mushed into it… yours actually gets on with the plot! And I love it! So update!

Hiira- Mwahaha, don't worry, everyone will meet sooner or later… Itachi is my favorite character too! He's so awesome! Sasuke is fun to write when he is crazy. He sounds like me. Isn't Itachi already a little crazy? Whether he is or not, I still love him! So… cool… Thank you!

Kayo-chan- A lot of people seemed to like the Gaara and Killua cookie thing! I dunno what I was thinking when I wrote that… I guess I was hungry or something. Lol, Gaara's evil cookies of doom! Thank you!

hakia seana( )- Yeah, I was thinking of adding Kimi too… I have plans for him once we reach Oro's place, but I dunno… I think Akima's going to end up fighting him in which case I'll have to totally smash her up a bit. Sasuke isn't a whore! He's just a baka. Tho, after that enlightening statement, Sasunaru works out really well… up to the Sasuke-baka episode. Stupid Sasuke. That's why I made him crazy. Fun. Itachi did learn the truth! Sheesh. I mean, the statement, "I'm from another world" wasn't a good enough pointer-outer? No, no painting nails! Especially not Gaara… … C'mon, can you imagine Gaara with purple nails? Doesn't work! Itachi DOES wear pants! You guys are just crazy!

Atiragram- AHHHHHHHHHHHH! I... I... have absolutely no idea what on earth ur talking about! Seriously, at all! I have a feeling that those 3 Akatsuki members you told me about... come in to the Naruto story later than I have watched... You see, I have only watched the anime, not read the manga! All my Akatsuki people (besides Itachi and Kisame) are completely made up! I have no idea of anything that happens past this point in the anime, which is currently on the Gaara v Kimimaro fight... So, I'm sorry, but those people you mentioned... since I have no idea who they are, how they act, and how they fight, won't be making any appearances in this story! Sorry! And Obito? Ehhh? All I know about him is that he was Kakashi's friend. And that's it. Seriously. Apparently, he is awesome tho, so once I get to know him, I will join u in ur fangirlism. But Itachi is still more awesome! You get squeally at 1:16 in the morn? I'm usually... like...dead or near dead. Unless I'm on sugar high. Which was often over spring break. Anyways, thank you for all your compliments! I'm sorry I can't incorporate those people!

A Sneaking Suspicion

"Let me get this straight, Sasuke-kun." Orochimaru stared down at a bound Sasuke from atop his throne-like chair. "You want me to help you kill your brother."

Sasuke nodded silently, the Sharingan in his eyes glowing.

Orochimaru smirked and got up to stand right in front of the Uchiha's bowed body haughtily. "And what would I get in return? Or am I supposed to be thankful that you did not run away with your other little friends?"

"You would get to help me in the murder of Itachi. I thought you hated him?" Sasuke spat out his brother's name as if it was poison.

"Yes, I do hate him and his stupid organization very much..." Orochimaru said consolingly. "In fact, I was planning to do away with them both as soon as I got my power. But... I can do that whether you are there to be a good little follower or not. And have you forgotten about that little present I gave you, Sasuke-kun?" Here Sasuke flinched as the cursed seal sent a needle of pain up his neck. "You are in no position to bargain with me."

Sasuke dropped his head a little. "So you won't help, then?" he said through gritted teeth.

"Well... as I said before, if you were listening, I was already planning on killing that blasted Uchiha. Whether you want me to or not doesn't change anything. His death is certain to come, I assure you of that. That should make you happy. But you let your only chance to escape go by and will get nothing in return. I pity you, Sasuke-kun, I really do." Orochimaru chuckled.

Sasuke said nothing, glaring at the ground in silent seething anger.

"Take him to his new cell now, Kabuto. I think he's done."

Kabuto moved forward and grabbed Sasuke's roughly tied arms and started to lug him away.

"Ah, wait." Orochimaru said suddenly, horribly pale fingers coming up to rest on his mouth in a pondering position. Sasuke and Kabuto turned to him questioningly.

"I think it would be fun if... oh yes." Orochimaru grinned creepily and then started to chuckle into his hands, which was quite a scary sight, even for him. Understandably, Kabuto believed that there must be something wrong with his master. After asking what was wrong and receiving a fierce glare in return, Kabuto tried his best to maintain his dignity and utterly failed.

"I was thinking that we could turn him on his older brother. Wouldn't that be amusing?" said Orochimaru turning his yellow eyes onto the ceiling.

Sasuke looked up at Orochimaru, confusion written all over his face.

Kabuto also failed to see what was so funny about it. After all, Sasuke already hated his older brother and would probably try to kill him on sight anyway. And as the right-hand-man of Orochimaru, he had the privilege of asking Orochimaru to clarify. Orochimaru rolled his eyes, another very creepy thing he could do.

"But Itachi doesn't hate his little brother. And with the knowledge that I'm the one controlling Sasuke, he won't be able to properly punish his little brother for his actions, since they won't entirely be his fault."

Sasuke bristled angrily. _'Itachi is punishing me for _my _actions? What the hell is going on?'_

Kabuto thought about it. "Well, it might make a little sense. If Itachi wanted Sasuke dead, then he would be."

"Not exactly. When we came back from our little adventure with Tsunade-hime, I received word from our Darkmoon spies that Sasuke-kun had a meeting with his brother. Apparently, Itachi first broke Sasuke-kun's wrist, then beat him into a wall for a while, then used the Tsukuyomi to torture him, causing him to fall into a coma."

"That doesn't sound like a very brotherly thing to do." Kabuto said, raising an eyebrow confusedly, pushing up his glasses.

"Yes, but he only did that after Sasuke-kun attempted to run him through with the Chidori. So, wouldn't you be a little pissed too?"

Sasuke did his best to not let the little droplet of understanding fall in his head. _'He's lying. It's too much analysis. Itachi killed our parents. He killed everyone. He has no remorse. He's an evil murderer.'_

"I suppose I would." Kabuto said. "So you're saying that Itachi wouldn't have done quite as much damage to Sasuke if he hadn't tried to kill him."

"I don't think he was planning on hurting Sasuke-kun at all. His mission was to get the Kyubi, and that's just what he was going to do. Nothing else. Right after I tried to give a cursed seal to Itachi and failed, he told me to stay away from his otouto. Isn't that sweet, Sasuke-kun?" Orochimaru's snake eyes glowed with amusement as they observed the effect of his words on the Uchiha.

The little droplet fell and created massive, overloading waves. _'Lies. Lies. He's just lying. Toying with my mind to make me more susceptible to the cursed seal. Itachi would never say that. _

'_Would he?'_

' _NO, he wouldn't.'_

' _Really?'_

' _No. Never. Never ever would he say that.'_

' _...'_

' _...'_

' _You sure? What reason does Orochimaru have to lie to you about something like that?'_

' _He's just trying to torture me in his own way. Trying to make me doubt.' _

'_You're already doubting.'_

' _Am not.'_

' _Are too.'_

' _Am not.'_

' _Stop arguing with yourself.'_

' _So shut up, then!'_

' _You shut up and then I will.'_

' _Just shut up!'_

'_...'_

'_...'_

'_No.'_

Sasuke howled with fury and shook his head violently, trying to make the voices go away. Orochimaru and Kabuto stared, bewildered.

When Sasuke passed out on the floor, Orochimaru turned to Kabuto. "That was strange." Kabuto nodded slowly and went to take Sasuke to his new cell.

With Akima

"So. What are we looking for?" said Akima as she hitched a ride on Gaara's sand across the lake.

"Orochimaru's place." Itachi replied, running on top of the water with Killua beside him, kicking up twin jet sprays of water that Gaara's sand had to bat away repeatedly.

"And... you know where that is?" questioned Akima, raising an eyebrow at Itachi's back.

"No."

Akima sighed. "We'll just have to trust out luck then, huh?" Itachi nodded and stepped onto the beach, just as Shikamaru stepped out of the forest. He froze.

"Well, my lucky day." Said Shikamaru, eyeing the four cautiously. "I'm here to make a deal."

Itachi's glare hardened as Kakashi, Naruto, Neji, and Lee (who, btw, is all better now) emerged from the shadows as well, all wearing equally aloof expressions. (aloof is a funny word!)

"Hi everybody... you're not still looking for me, are you?" Akima said, staring around. Her eyebrows creased. "Where's Sasuke?"

"Well, it's like this." Kakashi said nonchalantly. "Sasuke is in Orochimaru's possession." Itachi twitched. "The problem is, Sasuke apparently stayed with Orochimaru willingly. We want to get him out, whether he wants to or not."

"And this is important to us, why?" said Itachi, raising an eyebrow questioningly. Akima looked at him for a moment, closely studying his face.

'_You're good at lying, Itachi. For a second there I thought you really didn't care.'_

"Well, Naruto and Lee managed to escape from Orochimaru and can tell and lead you to where it is located." Said Shikamaru, crossing his arms. "In exchange, you and your partners will help us to rescue Sasuke. Alive."

Itachi looked back at Killua and Gaara. Gaara was staring at Naruto emotionlessly and Killua, noticing Gaara's interest in the golden-haired boy, stared too. Naruto stared at the ground, obviously still wrapped up in his thoughts about the dark-haired genin.

Noticing that he was probably the most suited to lead in his little group, Itachi sighed and closed his eyes, weighing the pros and cons. _'It would help all the Akatsuki members immeasurably. We wouldn't have to run around searching for Orochimaru's compound and waste valuable time. Since we are still near the Akatsuki, I can easily leave a note that will tell where it is located, if these Konoha ninjas really do know where it is... We would save the Uchiha blood limit from that disgusting snake sennin's fingers... However, these people may be simply bluffing. Sasuke might be somewhere else entirely, and this was all a hoax in an attempt to rescue Akima. Or maybe to figure out where or how to get into the Akatsuki... they are abnormally close... But... I'm sure that if they try anything, Killua and I will be able to hold them off. That sand-nin...'_

Itachi's eye moved to Gaara suspiciously. _'He has met up with them before, if my information is correct... therefore... we cannot fully trust him, either...' _

He looked over at Akima, who had her arms crossed, impatiently staring off into the distance. _'She shouldn't be that hard to subdue... after all, they've tried it before...' _Akima cocked an eyebrow at Itachi, who blinked once and came to a decision.

"In exchange for your help, we will rescue Sasuke from Orochimaru. However... you will make no move to capture Akima again. She will stay by my side at all times."

'_Oh great...' _thought Akima, sighing.

Kakashi nodded in acknowledgement. "We will not attempt anything. In order to ascertain their exact location, we will lead you to them. Lee, go on."

"Sir!" said Lee, and he pushed off into the forest. Eight ninjas swiftly followed him.

With Orochimaru

"Sir, our Darkmoon spies have informed us that they are in position to attack the Akatsuki group. Uchiha and Killua are the only true members present however. There seem to be two rookies... Gaara of the Sand and a girl who doesn't seem to have anything else of interest besides her abnormal chakra. They have met up and appear to have a truce with Kakashi-san, Naruto, Shikamaru, Lee, and Neji and are currently heading their way." Kabuto said.

"Good..." hissed the snake-nin, who was once again sitting on his creepy throne.

Kabuto shuffled his feet a little as a sole droplet of water echoed through the damp underground room. It was unnaturally cold... strange, snakes were supposed to like the warmth. Ah, whatever.

Kabuto gulped a little and then ventured to ask, "If I may ask, Orochimaru-sama..."

Orochimaru's eyes flicked, giving him the signal to continue.

"I really don't believe that the Darkmoon can stand against Uchiha Itachi and his partners... and you don't either, do you? Why waste their lives when they could be put to better purposes?"

"It is my hope that it will at least slow him down a little. I want to take no chances with Sasuke." Grinned Orochimaru. "Plus, they have outlived their usefulness, and I was not at all pleased by their failure to procure the demon girl and bring her to me."

Kabuto decided to push his luck just a little bit more with a last statement. "Judging from the description of the Akatsuki girl traveling our way given to us by the Darkmoon, she is very similar to the demon girl..."

Orochimaru waved a hand absently. "If it's her, we will capture her, if it's not... then do her in. You are dismissed."

Kabuto gave a curt bow and exited, leaving Orochimaru to chuckle humorlessly in the dark.

Meanwhile, someone else was ALSO chuckling creepily in the dark. Sasuke's cell was not really all that bad compared to the dark, damp prison that had contained Naruto, Lee and him before. THIS cell had a little concrete board that stood precariously on two legs next to a stone block wall. Whether it was meant to be used as a bed, chair, table, or something else entirely, didn't really matter. It could be all four of those choices.

There were no windows. Instead, dim light streamed between Sasuke's jail bars from the hallway outside, illuminating the room just enough for one to see a blurry yard or so in front of you. There were no rats, spiders, cockroaches, or any other kind of little vermin that one would expect in a typical dungeon. In their place were snakes.

They certainly weren't that big. Most were about one to two feet long, some a little smaller and some a little bigger. And they weren't very menacing. They didn't slide in through the bars of Sasuke's front wall and try and bite him. No, they slid in and just mulled around him, hissing. At least ten or so had come to visit Sasuke so far, just crawling up to him to say 'hi' in their own snakey way and then exploring the cell before slithering out.

However, Sasuke had decided that he hated snakes. They just reminded him of a certain sennin who happened to look quite a lot like a snake. Why was he chuckling? He wasn't really quite sure himself. Sometimes, I hope I'm not the only one who gets this, but you find the smallest little things hilarious and you just have to laugh, unable to draw breath or even explain to the people who are looking at you funny that you're just crazy. (God, I really hope I'm not the only one who gets that. Tell me if you do, I'm getting a little freaked out by myself now.) Anyways, Sasuke was sitting in his cell reflecting on all of his stupid decisions that had landed him in this horrible position in the first place.

He had spent about half his life training hard so that he could grow strong enough to kill his brother. He had been a jerk to everyone, his friends, allies, and enemies alike. Then again...

Sasuke hung his head between his knees. He didn't have the right to call Naruto a friend. Not after all that he had done. He had always been such a bastard... He had never once stopped to think about what others might feel. All that mattered was himself, and his brother. That's it. He was damn selfish.

Struggling with his own thoughts, Sasuke smashed a fist into the closest wall, attempting to clear his head. It worked... kind of. He still felt a little woozy. _'First things first. We'll start simple. Facts: Itachi killed my family. He tortured Kakashi-sensei and me. He captured Akima and attempted to capture Naruto. He's probably killed countless thousands. He's in an evil organization.' _Sasuke tried to think of more but couldn't. Those were the bare facts. Now came the hard part, the uncertain ideas. _'He might not hate me. He might be treating Akima alright. He might have had a better reason then to just test his own strength when he killed the Uchiha clan.' _Sasuke hesitated and then added one more. _'He might be sorry.' _

Sasuke compared the two lists in his head and smirked. The facts clearly outweighed the uncertainties. The obvious choice was the road he had already been on. Then why couldn't he believe it? Why? Itachi had never really been all that nice to him... well there were some good times, but overall, he had not been a kind, thoughtful, loving brother at all. So why?

Sasuke looked at the dark ceiling and shut his eyes tight. "I'm going crazy." He stated dully. "About damn time, too."

Author's Notes: Sorry, shorter than usual. But I thought that that was the best place to end and I'm tired... and overworked... and I want to sleep... so g'night...

WAIT! Remember to review! Comments, questions, complaints stated in a non-mean way... give them to me! They say that sophomore year is the worst year in high school. Feel sorry for me. Ok, don't. Just review. And ignore my dumb random statements. Sakura sucks! Cough. Choke. Die. Don't do drugs, people. My antidrug: sugar. And Itachi. Naruto does seem to have many drug references though, with all the soldier pills and whatnot. Dope! Don't smoke either. It smells bad. And gives me headaches. It's also wonderful for asthma. W00t... I'm sorry that I can't write... and that this chapter went absolutely no where... Sorry! I really am! But I can't seem to write well and in large amounts anymore...


	17. Bloody Battlefield

Author's Notes: You guys, major writer's block going on here... I don't understand... since this is getting really close to the climax, things should be coming easier because I had everything planned out all nice and stuff... but it's not...

I'm really sorry about the crappiness of… this chapter. I really had a bad writer's block. I got stuck. Although I know what's going to be going on, I didn't really have any idea how I was going to make it happen. Um… so… yeah. The beginning starts off really bad for a while. Then I regain my enthusiasm (kind of). Sorry again. School sucks ass. Badly.

**Review Responses**

Rhythmic- Ah ha! Drug references! That ups this review to Pg-13! Except now it's T! Which is weird... wonder why they changed it? Eh, whatever. Mwahaha, I'm a drug lord, apparently... everyone line up for dope! XD Thanks and come again... if you want your crack... Bring your money! I don't have any money... poor... should stop drooling at eBay... XD

Dragon Man 180- Yay, so I'm not as weird as I originally thought! Actually, I probably am worse... Whatever. Sasuke snapped awhile ago in the show at least, I think... Correction! Hinata has a _crush _on Naruto, she doesn't _love _him yet! And she stalks him... But yeah, Naruto and Hinata belong with each other in my opinion too. Hope it turns out that way. Haven't seen her in a while tho... Yeah... but I'll spoil something for you... No, nvm I won't because I'm not even sure how it will turn out with the Oro fights... I have an idea but I always end up changing them once I actually get there! Urgh.

SkyBlueSunShine- I have a plan in order to integrate fluff! And I promised myself I would stick to it! But now that you bring up this hate thing... You see, the way I look at it, if Itachi really hated someone, then they would be dead. Just like that. I'm going to go for the whole "sudden discovery" thing... like with Sasuke and Naruto in the Haku fight. Except, a little different, won't ruin it here. And Itachi will most definitely not be scratched. Maybe a little. Wait and see, ne? Thank you for that pointer though! I had never seen it that way before, but now that you said it, I realized it was true. Thanks and come again!

HikaruOfArrow- Lol, you love EVERY chapter! But I have no problem with that, thank you for brightening my day!

Altariel Eldalote- Lol, the new Hitler? Yeah, it's weird what I find absolutely hilarious... I usually close my eyes and try to take deep breaths to calm myself down. But then when I open my eyes I start laughing again. Everyone's all like WTF? XD Drunk Lee HAS to show up! I still have to think of a way to get him drunk tho... hmm... who randomly carries around sake? Hmm... Ah yes, our genius minds are already starting to meld... I can hear your thoughts! They say... huggles? Eh? Sasuke is a funny dude. Now if only we could hear his inner conversations in the show... Bribed! (Gives many huggles, a cookie, and a priceless Naruto plushie)

loveable-M- Agh, flattery, flattery! You cause me to write more, evil! (Jk!) Thank you and come again!

Hiira- I KNOW! WAY TOO SHORT! I was mad at myself too, don't worry about it. And school makes me feel bad too. In a non-awesome way. (Sigh) Well, there's no Oro and Sasuke in THIS chapter, so it's ok right? ...Right? (slinks away in defeat)

crazy-antman- Of course Itachi cares! Can't you see past his icy cold evil traumatizing torturing shell? ...Neither can I. But I can imagine, right? XD Thanks and come again!

Anonymous- Aha! Another person who sees past Itachi's poker face! Sasuke's full of himself. Did Itachi ever say, "Sasuke, I left you alive so you can beat the crap out of me later."? NO, he didn't! Itachi told him to hate... and hate more! Yeah, you know. Eh, btw, is making serious points funny a good thing? Lol, I don't read the Fullmetal Alchemist manga, but I have watched the entire show... no, not the evil dubbed version, I DOWNLOAD! A long time ago. Don't really remember it too well... But I DO recall it making me very sad at various points... I don't know whether you have read/watched the whole thing so I won't say anything, but basically... I had one fav char, and he/she died... and then I had another afterwards... and then he/she died too! And then my NEXT fav died as well! And then my very last one ALMOST died! Ahem. So... yeah. All the stinking non-major characters that were awesome died or almost did. Sigh. Thanks and come again.

Rishan- Thank you! Here's an update, and longer than the last one!

Brelle- Thank you! Support always helps. (constructs a throne out of various supports) Ah... bliss... what? I'm dreaming? Noooo... (screen fades out)

faith b- Lol, thank you! Realistic, you say? I don't know, in the beginning I was comparing Akima to myself basically... I didn't think up a personality for her beforehand, so she turned out like me... and I'm real! ...I think... And yes, I'm a big fan of Itachi for sure, and I love Kisame's sword! (steals) A little big tho... heavy... OOF! Thanks and continue reading! I'm guessing it will be awhile until you see this response... if you see it at all! Well, just in case, ya know? XD

Mystrivin- Heh... I barely have any description! I've noticed that... it's just that I don't really think out settings or anything, so... yeah. Ha! Someone finally noticed that I snuck a slight in front of the pairing so that no one can yell at me TOO much for not putting much in. And I doubt there will be any make-out things in this fic... Probably no kissing either... hugs though! Yes, Itachi definitely needs more sleep! He's an overworked person like us. Being a sophmore sucks... and I heard that junior year is even worse! W00t... I don't neglect it! ...much... I do tend to... stop typing for periods of time but I promised myself and my readers that I would finish it, so... I will! I'll have to check the Lazy Uchiha out... Itachi rocks!

Hellfires Fury- Agh! Another person who likes my story! Scary! I usually update every 2 weeks or so... And I'm not very proud of this chapter... but read, and enjoy, I guess. Thank you for your comments! I feel special...

ColdCypher- Thanks! Alot! XD XD XD XD Lol, come again!

**There are a lot of fast scene changes here. Sorry!**

Bloody Battlefield

After several hours of chasing Lee around the forest, something interesting finally happened.

Akima was really bored. She had done the 'turn off your brain to conserve energy' trick, but that only works for certain amounts of time... and plus, if you want to become a good ninja, one must be alert at all times! Like Itachi! ...However, Akima had lost interest in her surroundings quite a while ago and left Itachi to do the scanning for enemy ninja and traps and so forth. Hence, she was bored.

Itachi was just being his awesome cold self. While wearing a mask of indifference, he was pretty much relying on his instincts to get him and Akima through the forest alive. He had her jumping in sync beside him, suspicious of the Konoha ninjas true intentions, though he had not yet resorted to using chakra strings to bind her to him.

Killua was bursting with energy, trying to do acrobatics in the spaces between landings, seeing how many somersaults and whatnot he could complete.

Gaara had stayed behind by the beach under Itachi's orders and was probably informing the other Akatsuki members who were taking part in this mission exactly where to go. The reason Gaara had been chosen for this particular job was because he could teleport easily using the sand. Not that everyone else couldn't do that or anything. But whatever. Once he was done, he popped back up and amusedly watched Killua and his boundless energy.

Naruto took over Sasuke's job of being dark, silent, and brooding. All the Konoha ninjas, plus Akima and Gaara, would glance over at him from time to time, worrying.

Shikamaru had started jumping with his hands in his pockets, his head drooping a little. It was the public opinion that he was jumping while asleep.

Kakashi, Neji, and Lee were up front, leading the way. Neji would occasionally use the Byakugan to see if he could spot any ambushes or anything of interest.

This continues for some time.

Um... So after a certain time period, Neji noticed something very strange. Pausing on his branch and silently signaling for everyone to stop, he concentrated on the pinpoints of light a few hundred feet in front of him. Zooming in closer, he saw the little scraps of telltale paper that were so obviously laid out everywhere.

"I think we're getting close." Said Neji, addressing the entire group. "There are numerous traps set up around here, so we'll have to be extra cautious. The person with the best trap-finding skills should go first."

Akima glanced expectantly at Itachi, but he shook his head. "If I were to go first, Akima would have to be right there as well, and she would more than likely set off every trap that she happens to cross paths with."

Akima glared but conceded that it was true. _'I don't make a very good ninja... well, I would have been better if you had trained me in the least, Itachi-baka!' _she pouted, rolling her eyes.

Meanwhile, Itachi silently added, _'And I'm not about to have all of these Konoha ninja behind my back, anyway. How foolish to think that I would trust them enough to do so.'_

When no one volunteered, Kakashi stepped forward. "Well, I guess I'll do it." He raised a hand to his forehead protector to pull it up and reveal his Sharingan eye. "Neji can back me up."

"Hai." Said Neji, sighing with both eyes closed. He was overusing the Byakugan already and he knew it. His eyes were tired and he just wanted to let them rest. But this was a very important mission; he could not simply give up and let his teammates down. Grudgingly, he performed the necessary hand seals and didn't even bother saying Byakugan, simply letting his chakra creep painfully into his sore eyes. Fighting to keep them open, he and Kakashi advanced slowly and carefully. One mistake and everyone except Itachi, because he was invincible, was toast. Raw eggs on toast.

Shikamaru was the first to notice Neji's tiredness. The implications were as clear as day to the chuunin. Firstly, Neji was wobbling dangerously as he landed on each branch. Secondly, he was blinking far too many times as normal. Thirdly, he was _panting_. Neji _never _panted. At least he never did when they were just jumping around in a forest. From his bowed-down energy-saving stature, Shikamaru watched the Hyuuga stumble ever so slightly. This could get dangerous.

"Oi, Neji! I'll take over." Drawled Shikamaru lazily, not bothering to look the Byakugan user in the eye.

"No, I'm fine." Replied Neji automatically. _'He didn't notice, did he? I can't believe my own weakness...'_

Shikamaru snorted. "No, you're not." He said pointedly. You've been overusing your Byakugan for quite some time now."

As Neji was about to protest again, Kakashi cut in. "Shikamaru, take over. Neji, take a breather and let your eyes rest. We have a hard time coming up, so it's best that you're ready. We don't want any casualties, ne?" Kakashi curved his eye, but the false humor sounded hollow.

"I really am fine." Said Neji, refusing to give in. Straightening his back and reining in his breathing, he glared at the chuunin and jounin. "Don't underestimate me." _'My eyes burn... but I can do this.'_

Shikamaru and Kakashi exchanged glances.

Itachi stepped forward. "Let's put it this way. We are wasting valuable time while you argue over insignificant things. If the Hyuuga says he can do it, then let him. If he falls in battle from exhaustion later..." Here he turned to stare at Neji. "It will be of his own doing."

"And that's exactly what we want to prevent." Said Kakashi. "Neji, just let Shikamaru do it."

Something glinted in Neji's eye, not unlike Lee and Gai. He's been around them too much and has, sadly, picked up a few habits unconsciously. Not too many though. We do want to preserve his awesomeness, right? Anyways, Neji stuck out his fisted hand into Shikamaru's confused face and said determinedly, "I'll challenge you to rock, paper, scissors, then. If you win, then you can lead."

Shikamaru moved a hand up to scratch the back of his head. "Going up front isn't a privilege to me, you know. This is for your own good." He shrugged, closing his eyes helplessly. "But arguing is troublesome, and as Uchiha-san said, we are wasting time, so I accept your challenge."

Neji smirked. He was the _master _of rock, paper, scissors. No one would call him weak after this! "Okay, one...two..." Neji and Shikamaru held their fisted hands out and lightly beat them on the palms of their other hand, counting off.

"Three!"

Neji gazed in horror at the outcome. He had used his unbeatable strategy of rock... and Shikamaru had chosen... paper.

"Well, that's that then." Said Shikamaru as he went to take his place at the front. Neji was frozen to the spot, right hand held up in front of his face as he examined it closely, as if looking for defects. Upon finding none, he started glaring fiercely at it.

'_Stupid... hand... It's all your fault!' _thought Neji, jaw tense with anger.

"Oi, Neji, you can't win every time." Said Kakashi. "And think of it as a reward for doing so well these past days."

As Neji was about to respond, Itachi suddenly had Akima, who had been standing off to the side, against a tree. "We have visitors." He said monotonously, drawing a kunai. "You stay put, Akima."

"Joy." She replied, face smooshed up against the bark. "You could have warned me or something before slamming me against this trunk."

"It was the safest option available." Said Itachi, eyes flicking back and forth suspiciously as the Sharingan wheels beginning to turn. "What if they tried to ambush us?"

"Then I would be either killed or captured instantaneously." Drawled Akima, rolling her eyes. "What I meant was that you could have been a little gentler."

"Perhaps." Said Itachi shortly. "Quiet now, and don't stray from here."

Kakashi, Neji, and Shikamaru were crouching on the branch opposite Itachi and Akima. Each held a kunai ready.

"I don't sense anything." Whispered Shikamaru.

"Same here." Said Neji, the Byakugan finally gone. However, his head hurt and sometimes his vision would go all blurry. Kakashi looked over concernedly and motioned for Shikamaru to cover Neji without the Hyuuga noticing.

Lee and Naruto crouched on the ground, peering up into the branches. The wind whistled, blowing a couple leaves about aimlessly. But there was no other sound...

Gaara and Killua, both shielded by sand, were also on the ground, though in plain sight. Considering Gaara's sand shield, neither really needed to hide as long as they stayed near each other. Then again, considering their power levels, there probably wouldn't be any reason for them to hide anyway. Unless the enemy, who had still not shown itself, happened to be quite powerful.

And it was. Just when Akima had had about enough of the 'being crushed against a tree' business, Darkmoon attacked.

The first volley of exploding tags was directed, naturally, at Gaara and Killua since they were out in the open. Sand exploded out of the gourd in waves, crumpling each tag as it came and muting the explosions. Killua gave a low whistle and then winked at Gaara cheekily.

"Cover me?" he asked, grinning, as he reached into his holster. Gaara gave a nod in return, silently commanding a portion of the sand to circle Killua. The white-haired ninja looked down in surprise, before rubbing the back of his head and smiling cheerily. "Not exactly what I meant, but it works. Thanks!"

Then Killua took out a shuriken and threw it at Itachi, smirking as the Uchiha's hand snatched it out of midair, his crimson eyes staring down at him from atop the tree.

"I needed to get your attention!" yelled Killua, explaining his actions. Itachi made no response other than blinking once. "Are we going to fight it out? These are probably the Darkmoon, 'cuz they're too weak to be the snake's _real _henchmen." Another volley of exploding tags made their way towards Killua, but he didn't even flinch, putting absolute faith in Gaara's sand which was quick to tackle the miniscule harassment.

A nasal voice echoed around the clearing. "You think we're weak, huh, Akatsuki? You only have two members here and some puny Konoha ninjas to cover you as meat shields. We'll see who's weak after this."

Despite the warning, nothing appeared to happen. Itachi still kept Akima against the tree despite her mumbling protests, and looked down at Killua, who was still impatiently waiting for an answer to his question. "We'll annihilate them." He said to Killua, eyes narrowing at a suspicious clump of leaves.

"Good," said Akima. "Now let me go."

"You and I can stay right here." Replied Itachi. "Their aim is probably just to slow us down at this point as they wait for reinforcements, but..." he lowered his voice past even his normal softness so that Akima had to strain her ears to hear. "They might be after you." She stiffened a little, but then relaxed.

"I doubt it. It's gotta be either Naruto or Gaara." She whispered back, but Itachi did not respond, instead taking his time to predict where the next attack would spring from.

"Kakashi-san, I would advise you to cover your students from the right." Said Itachi, cocking an eyebrow as a bush shuddered lightly next to the jounin. Kakashi sweeped through the bush faster than you could say 'weed-whacker', but missed the departing Darkmoon ninja by mere inches. As he watched the man jump back, his eyes widened in shock as the ninja disappeared without even a poof.

Naruto and Lee were stuck under a tree trying to fend off a hail of shuriken. Lee caught a couple and threw them at the already departing shadows, but none hit their targets.

"They're too quick to run away." Said Lee. "Come out and fight!"

Naruto nodded assent, eyes glimmering.

"They're too weak to come at us straight on..." mused Shikamaru. "So they're going for guerrilla tactics."

"Hit-and-run, huh? How troublesome." Sighed Neji.

"Stop stealing my line." Said Shikamaru, annoyed, as Neji rolled his eyes.

"It's not yours. You just use it a lot." Sniffed Neji, crossing his arms. Shikamaru mumbled something incomprehensible about troublesome Hyuugas, which Neji ignored, since it wasn't about the Branch House, and therefore, he didn't care and couldn't go on for hours and hours about it.

"No ideas, then? No genius plans coming out?" asked Neji, attempting to activate his Byakugan and discovering that he couldn't. Shikamaru watched Neji's contorted expression before sighing and putting his fingertips together.

"Cover me for a bit." The lazy ninja said, concentrating on the problem at hand.

"Will do." Said Neji, looking around at the bushes for anymore unwelcome surprises. He felt so pathetic and powerless without the Byakugan.

Kakashi noticed his student's anxiety and his eyes softened considerably, despite the danger of the situation. _'He has come to rely too much on his blood limit, just like me and the Sharingan. Now, without it, he is considerably weakened and unstable. I'll bet he has not trained under these handicapped circumstances for a long time, if ever.'_ Kakashi shook his head and returned his attention to the surroundings. It just meant he would have to be more careful in order to protect both of his students.

WHIZ!

Kakashi saw the shuriken coming and used a kunai to block them, sending each ninja star spinning off in different directions. _'We could use a plan soon...'_

_--------------------------------------_

"Hey, Itachi-baka." Akima whined. "Let me at least fight?"

Itachi ignored her, as she had already asked that question several times and the answer had not changed.

"Well, how long do you think we are going to sit up here, then?" asked Akima.

"Until we receive back-up or decide to try and move on." Replied Itachi softly. "Ninja should be patient."

Akima gave a quiet snort in reply. "I'm a bad ninja."

"That is apparent."

She sighed, blowing at a very threatening spider that was slowly making its way down the trunk where her head was pressed against. "At least let off a little! I'm suffocating here."

To her surprise, Itachi let her go. Confused, she moved away from the bark and looked around to find that the Uchiha had disappeared.

"Itachi?" No one answered. "Well then." She gazed around at the foreboding branches and took out a kunai, ready to slice up anyone who tried anything. But she still wondered why Itachi had decided to leave so very suddenly, and without even saying anything! Maybe he was going to go take care of the Darkmoon? Hmm... truly strange.

All thoughts were suddenly whipped from Akima's mind as she noticed the extreme silence of the clearing. It was just like in that one movie that I can't remember the name of... the one where someone says, 'it's quiet... TOO quiet...' and then all these horrible things come jumping out from everywhere or something to that extent. ANYWAYS, as Akima was stupidly staring around everywhere, a Sound ninja decided to attack her!

(cue dramatic music!)

Akima, out of reflex and high nerves, threw a kunai at him, thunking squarely into his head. The ninja died.

(end dramatic music)

"Eh?" said Akima, staring at the lifeless corpse that hit the ground with a bloody splat. What was even scarier was when purple fumes rose all around it and it rose shakily to its feet, tottering slightly, only the veined whites of its eyes revealed to the world. "Eep!" said Akima as it began to crawl up a nearby tree trunk. Quickly, she jumped over to another nearby tree branch, where Neji, Shikamaru, and Kakashi were also staring intently at the creature.

"What IS that?" whispered Akima. The others, not knowing the answer, simply ignored her and gaped at the... thing. It wasn't really heading towards them... it was just making its own merry way up the tree... while most certainly dead... and covered in its own grisly remains and blood... didn't seem too normal.

"Don't attack it unless it shows hostility towards us." Said Kakashi, not relishing fighting with the zombie unless really needed. The others nodded dumbly. It's not like any of them wanted to come anywhere near that thing either.

Suddenly, as if on cue, the zombie stopped, cocked its head as if listening to something that only it could hear, and then jumped off in the opposite direction of Akima's little group. They looked at each other and then cautiously followed it, keeping a respectable distance back, until they entered another clearing, full of the signs off battle. A very unique sight greeted them.

There were the Darkmoon ninjas, being attacked by... the Akatsuki? Gaara and Killua were already there, hacking their way through hordes of Sound nin. What was so strange about it... was that as Sound ninjas fell, they immediately were surrounded by the same purple mist as seen around the first dead ninja and jerked to their feet, turning to attack their comrades. It was a psychological as well as physical attack... having your friends attack you is not so good for a healthy mind. It's not good for your body either, taking into consideration how the zombies held simple, yet sharp, weapons that they used relentlessly. There was no hesitation, no emotion, no strategy... just empty shells of existence with one goal: kill.

Akima noticed one Akatsuki member, standing out with his black and red cloud cloak, situated a little back from the battle at hand and calling forth large amounts of purplish chakra from outstretched hands. Upon closer inspection, Akima picked out the telltale black and white hair; Akatsuki member number five, Haru the necromancer. It was his will that powered the zombies that arose from the bodies of the dead and played the most dangerous game with the souls that were kept from their eternal rest.

A crash of something shattering drew Akima's attention to a little deeper into the battlefield. A huge chunk of ice had sprung from the ground and enveloped a large amount of Sound nins, before shattering into pieces. When one is frozen, and whatever one happens to be frozen into is broken... one shatters as well. I'll leave that picture up to your imagination. It's not pretty. I would actually love to describe it, but this is PG-13. (Shucks) Shuya the ice master and healer, Akatsuki member number 4, froze his way through the earth and air, neatly slicing up pieces of human.

Killua and Gaara were having a wonderful time beating up their fair share of enemies. Gaara was making good use of his only weapon, his sand, by crushing, squeezing, swatting, tripping... basically anything that you can do with it. Killua was stabbing, ripping out hearts, and generally just having fun. Akima could see the twisted grin on his face and imagined his crazed laughter as blood ran down his hands in rivulets. (Killua's bloodlust is exaggerated, ne?)

It rained blood over the battlefield. This was a shinobi war, one of the most dangerous battles one could ever participate in. And yet, contrary to normal standards, the numbers were definitely not even. Akima counted very, very few red-and-black cloaked Akatsuki versus the... hundreds of Darkmoon and Sound? And yet the Akatsuki was carving its way through their adversaries like a hot knife through butter. This was no battle. It was a massacre.

If Itachi had a middle name, it would definitely be massacre. And he HAD been doing his share of awesome ass-kicking, but then he had noticed the Konoha ninjas, now joined by Naruto and Lee (who had, btw, wondered where everyone had went and come to investigate) were watching with their eyes all goggled out and went to go and retrieve Akima. She was SUPPOSED to stay back in the forest and be safe where he had left her! Sheesh, standing out there in the open was bound to get her killed.

After jumping up to where Akima was standing, startling her, he inclined his head to one side and said, "We should keep moving, the Akatsuki can handle things here. Orochimaru is the prime objective. It should be relatively easy, I doubt many guards will be left at the compound."

Akima copied him, cocking her head at him in return, earning an amused glance. Totally ignoring his comment, she pointed an accusing finger in his face, making him go cross-eyed as he looked at it. "YOU ditched me."

Itachi nodded. "Yes. But you were complaining about not being allowed to fight, so isn't that what you wanted me to do? Anyways, after I heard the silent Akatsuki call, I had to leave right away."

Raising an eyebrow and adopting a 'what-the-hell' expression, Akima spoke again. "You _heard _the _silent _Akatsuki call? That's an oxymoron."

"..."

"So, we're going to get Sasuke-teme back now?" said Naruto, speaking up for what seemed like the first time in years. Itachi nodded at him.

"Some of us should stay here. Smaller groups move faster." Itachi looked around. "Naruto, you can lead us there. Akima, you obviously will be coming so that you can't run away. And... since we need some powerful shinobi, Gaara and Killua. Kakashi, you stay here and look after your other students." Itachi turned to get Gaara and Killua to come along, but was immediately faced down by Kakashi.

"Why Naruto? Why not Lee?" said Kakashi.

"You still think that the Kyubi matters to me at this point?" said Itachi mockingly. "I took the strongest, besides Akima. (here Akima glared at him and pouted, which Itachi inwardly smirked at) Your student will be returned in virtually good condition."

"How can I trust you?" said Kakashi suspiciously. "I will go-"

"Kakashi-sensei." Naruto cut him off. "I can take care of myself. And I'm pretty sure Gaara will help me if anything happens. Besides, not to be rude or anything, but... even if you did come along, I don't think it would make that much of a difference anyways." Naruto grinned and put his hands behind his head, regaining his everyday attitude. "And I'll be sure to drag Sasuke back here no matter what. AFTER I pummel him into the ground, of course."

Itachi blinked at the Kyubi container's confidence. "There you go, Kakashi-san. I would be more worried about your other students. _They _are here."

'_Who?' _thought Kakashi, before noticing a menacing presence suddenly make itself known in front of them.

"Take care of them, would you?" said Itachi, before motioning to Akima and Naruto and darting off down the battlefield to where Gaara and Killua were fighting.

"Ch, stupid ass." Said the red-haired, foul-mouthed, flute-playing Tayuya. "Ran off like a wuss before we could even _start _to beat the crap out of him."

"Ne, Tayuya, be happy we don't have to face the likes of him. All we have here are some kawaii genin and a copycat." Replied Sakon, his brother's head dozing on the back of his neck, as always.

"We can have some fun with them, can't we? I would enjoy a game or two." Snickered the 6-armed spiderman, Kidoumaru.

Kakashi, Neji, Shikamaru, and Lee stared in horror at the grotesque and disfigured sound nin. (Tayuya is actually relatively normal. Um, btw, this takes place BEFORE Sasuke became an ass and ran off. So Shikamaru, Neji, and Lee, have never seen these people before. And if you recall, I had Jiroubo killed by Orochimaru already, so he's obviously not here.)

"I'm telling you one thing right now..." drawled Shikamaru, sticking his hands in his pockets as he glared at the new enemy. "I'm NOT fighting the woman."

Author's Notes: Um... w00t? Itachi is so awesome. Itachi's Sharingan did a weird thing. Very very weird... but cool... If you know what it is and how it works, DON'T tell me! I'm just ranting right now. And I don't want it to be spoiled! ...Sigh. Again, this is only 10 pages as opposed to the usual 12... but if you wanted this out in time, they're going to be shorter. And worse.

Um, question! Answer if you want to! Questions may or may not have to do with the plot... just some things that have been bothering me.

1. How old is Kimimaro?

2. Will you guys kill me if I kill anyone? Meaning good and bad guys, major and minor alike... (Oro, Kabuto, Kimi, Killua, Kisame, Neji... yeah you know. No, these are simply random characters; they are not a list of the dead)

3. Considering the end of the story... does it have to be happy? ...Preferably right? So much easier to just kill Akima off though... (Don't worry, I probably won't, but I'm trying to measure people's opinions here)

4. I've heard that some people want the non-major OC's (every OC besides Akima) out of the story. Does this fare well with you people?

5. Itachi is so freaking awesome. Does anyone know his birthday? I will spend that day worshipping all my Itachi stuff... which as of now is nothing, besides the episodes and a horde of pics...

6. How many people would hate me if I randomly killed Sakura? ...Regardless, I probably will anyway...

Thank you and come again!


	18. Sound THREE

Author's Notes: Itachi is SO innocent! After watching ep. 131, I'm even more convinced of the fact that Sasuke is crazy and just hallucinated all that stuff about Itachi being evil and whatnot. Don't worry Itachi! I shall support you! Forever! No matter what reality says! ... I don't believe in reality anymore anyway. P

HikaruOfArrow- I'm not making fun of you! I LOVE your reviews! Yay! Thank you for all that information about Itachi... Were you serious about being the president of the Itachi fanclub at your school? ... I should make one at MY school! But then, I wouldn't be able to share. Hm. Tragic ending might make people depressed, and as someone pointed out, this story's genre does have humor in it. So it will probably turn out happy, but with a twist... not telling! Oh! As for killing Sakura, the whole point that I'm doing it is because it was supposed to be a happy little humor thingie at the very end. And I still haven't decided whether I should do so or not... Decisions, decisions.. Thank you and come again!

Dragon Man 180- Ah! I wish my b-day was so close to Itachi's... And since this a (partly) humor story, the good people (Akatsuki included) won't be killed. Probably. Ah, I already have an awesome Itachi poster... (stares in awe) I'll make a little shrine of Itachi pictures or something. Did you know that there aren't any Itachi plushies on ebay? Preposterous! Thank you and come again!

Hiira- Don't worry don't worry! Akima IS the name of the story (sadly, I think I should change the name because it's so uncreative. But kinda late now, huh?) and I will NEVER kill Itachi! Or make him sad! He might get a scratch just to be realistic... but... NOOO, Itachi! No scratches! XP I'm still debating on Itachi's ability to receive injuries... And Sakura's random death is debatable. We'll see... Thank you and come again!

ColdCypher- Glad you like Akima! She was supposed to be a pretty 'tomboy-ish' girl, as opposed to (cough) SOME girls in Naruto. Temari and Tayuya are pretty cool tho. Thank you and come again!

crazy-antman- Ah! Philosophical smartness! I WILL please myself! There's bound to be some people out there who will (hopefully) agree with my way of doing stuff. Hmm... (ponderponder) I will take your advice into consideration! Thank you very much!

SkyBlueSunShine- Akima is such an uncreative name! (Smacks head for naming story without thinking) Akima will not die. Probably. And the story is humor, so I guess I can't really kill off the good characters. Thank you and come again!

Mystrivin- I was told when Itachi's birthday was (June 9th) but I went to absoluteanime dot com anyways... and they say he's a terrorist leader! LOL, I'm sorry, get weird pictures in my head... That place is really cool, I should check all the Naruto characters b-days and find out which is closest to mine! It would probably be some random person who died... Thank you and come again!

hurrahhurrah- Lol, thank you for all the comments! And you were the only one who liked Neji's craziness. I don't know, I think I like making my characters OOC... they do tend to get that way. It's been decided that the story will be happy and none of the good characters will die, though some may be hospitalized... mwahahaha! Not Itachi tho. Too cool. Hm... you like Sakura? I would like her more if she snapped out of her 'Sasuke-kun' phase and actually concentrated on being a ninja. Plus, she just seems... weepy... like when Sasuke left Konoha for pervy snakeman, the whole episode she was bawling and it pissed me off! Grrrrr. Thank you and come again. I'll reconsider killing pink hair.

XoXSilverDragonXoX- Yes stress sucks! Let's kill all our teachers! Mwahahaha! Sequel? I don't know if this story is good enough for that. But maybe, the ending I've decided DOES leave room for that, which I'm not going to tell you! Lol, um, probably no good character deaths. In fact, I'm almost positive that they'll all get through alive, though some may be hospitalized. No one seems to care if Sakura dies! This is a good thing! It lets me plot devious evil ways to torture and maim and mutilate and... (continues) Thank you and come again!

Mystik- Yup yup, Akima will pull through more than half dead... and none of the good characters will die. And the ending will be kind of happy. Not tragic, I guess. Part of this genre IS humor, so ya. Thank you and come again!

NanamiYatsumaki- YOU'RE GETTING ITACHI'S CLOTHES? ... ... ... (Steals) Cough. Ahem. So! Disregarding the blatant JEALOUS URGES of you getting Itachi's stuff... All I own of him is... 2 posters, several billion pictures and collages, and soon an Akatsuki wristband that I ordered on ebay. Did you know that there are NO Itachi plushies on ebay? (tears out hair in frustration) Do you know if they even exist? I... want... one... NOW... Ack! Power to the Itachi worshippers! Thank you and come again!

HikaruNoJingoku- Ah, yes. We will be having a happy ending and no deaths of the good guys, including Akatsuki. Though some will be beaten within an inch of his or her life... cough. But no deaths. Sakura's death is still debatable. Maybe... Thank you and come again!

ThE BiTtEr PrInCeSs- I DO care about your computer! I LOVE my computer! It is my life! (Hugs computer) I even put gold foil and stuff on the top so it won't get (too) dusty. Yes yes, happy endings, all good characters and Akatsuki will survive, and all-around fuzzy bunnies everywhere. Jk, we all love emergency trips to hospitals... with blood and guts and stuff. Mwahaha, but no deaths. Sakura is still on debate. Thank you and come again.

He Who Dragons Worship- Hm, people seem to like my OC's and be against good character death, so we'll be having a happy fuzzy bunny story. Except that there will be numerous near-death situations and emergency trips to the hospital. Yes the story is reaching it's conclusion very soon. Very very soon. Maybe... 2 more chapters? And I might make a sequel, depends on motivation and story ideas. And summer work load. Sigh. Thank you and come again!

unknown2- Agh! Spoiler spoiler spoiler! Agh agh agh! Poor Itachi! ...I'm sad now. Sigh. Don't worry Itachi, I'll love you! Cough. So. Sasuke will be beaten within an inch of his life and will NOT lay a finger on Itachi's awesome hair! Bad Sasuke, he's already beating poor Naruto up in the anime. Wow! I wish I could see the kanji... but I can't and I don't know how to make them appear! Could you enlighten me? And about the name Akima, it originally came from a move called Titan A.E. and I thought it sounded cool so I just used it. I had no idea it meant anything, but both of those are cool! Maybe I should change the name of the fic to one of those... Hm, Tomorrow's Truth sounds REALLY awesome, but Autumn Evil makes more sense with the storyline, because Akima's a demon and all that. And I guess I could make her birthday in autumn. Ooh! Autumn means the same as 'fall' so it could be Fall Evil and then it would sound like 'fall of evil'! Cough. Anyways, those are both cool and you can make more if you want, but I won't be able to see them! Do you know how to install the language pack or anything? Thank you and come again.. ah! If I changed the name to Autumn Evil, then I could name the sequel (if there is one) Tomorrow's Truth and somehow tie it to the storyline! GASP! Heehee, you may have started something here...

faith b- Lol, it's going to be a long time before you see this reply to your review! You'll probably have forgotten what you were reviewing about. Well, thank you for your support on my first fight scene (in chapter 4!) and I hope you liked the great big long one in ch...10? 12? Something? I don't remember. It was somewhere around there. Thank you, and keep going! There shouldn't be many chapters left after this one, I'm guessing!

Sound THREE

"Stupid bastard!" screamed Tayuya as Kakashi threw a barrage of kunai at her. She back-flipped off the tree branch she had been standing on and began to play on that well-known flute, her freaky summons charging towards the Copy Ninja. He nimbly avoided, Sharingan already exposed and ready.

'_Stupid pervert is fast...' _thought Tayuya, urging on the summons to work faster by playing a more complex melody. Only a few branches away, Kakashi barely paused to form a few seals but was suddenly interrupted by the now faster-moving summons. Completing the seals in midair, three Kakashi Kage Bunshins erupted and split up. Startled, Tayuya drew the monsters back near her for protection. Her melodies worked best against one person; she could not attack several at once. The notes and hand movements were different for each beast, and using all at the same time in different settings, especially when out of her sight, was difficult even for a master flute-player like her. And against this famous shinobi, she knew better than to stretch her luck.

However, Kakashi's clones were already moving to surround her and the monsters. Out of sight, each drew electric blue chakra into their hands, waiting until the opportune moment, as Captain Jack Sparrow would say.

That moment came seconds later, as they all erupted from their hiding at the same time. Three Kakashi's thrusted the Raikiri into three of Tayuya's summons, while the fourth Kakashi leapt from above and stabbed at Tayuya herself. However, having been given ample warning by the sudden poofs of her beasts and the four crackling chirps, she managed to escape, unscathed, into the foliage below.

'_Shit. There goes all my chakra.' _Thought Kakashi. He could only use the Chidori four times in a day... and there they all went. He had been attempting to rush, determined to follow Naruto, just in case anything happened. He had gambled on a quick finish, and had lost. And now it would be even harder to defeat the red-haired Sound nin.

'_Fuck. Just fucking great. I hate having to use my Cursed Seal!' _growled Tayuya inwardly as the seal on the back of her neck throbbed and spat forth red-hot zigzags all along her face and neck before they cooled to a coal black. Raising her hands, she summoned three more grotesque creatures, reasoning that the scarecrow would not be able to play the same trick again. Her strategy had never failed her before, exempting Kimimaro and Orochimaru of course.

From his vantage point on the side of a tree, hanging on like Spider-Man with one hand on the branch above him and the other curved into the tree's rough bark, Kakashi waited impatiently, searching his mind for a better plan. _'No good to rush. Hurrying with this shinobi will get you get killed.' _Kakashi told himself, trying to calm his nerves. He cursed as three more poofs signaled the arrival of her monsters, eyes already sizing up the new enemy. As the flute's song resumed, strange translucent ghosts of some kind grew out of their mouths, each ghost having numerous fanged mouths that drooled with sticky saliva.

Alarmed, Kakashi created a couple Kage Bunshins, drawing his chakra well almost completely dry. Panting, he sent them off in different directions, attempting to confuse the disgusting spirits, only to discover that they shot towards the real him with unbelievable speed for such ungainly beings, totally ignoring the decoys. Letting himself drop from the branch he still clung to, he discovered with shock that they still followed after him despite having no eyes.

Tayuya smirked as the battle passed out of her vision and fully gave herself up to the music. The chakra-eating worms, since they lacked eyes, were only able to detect a being's chakra and simply followed the unmistakable scent to consume it as quickly as possible. For now, Kakashi was kept at bay, wasting energy avoiding the worms as he desperately racked his brains for some sort of plan.

Feeling inside his back pocket for a kunai or something else to defend himself with, he felt his fingers close on two smooth and round objects. Wondering what they were, as he had not remembered putting anything into that particular pocket other than shuriken and kunai and maybe an exploding tag or two, he pulled it out and discovered that they were the two little training bells that he had coached Team 7 with so long ago. No how had he forgotten to take those out?

He had little more time to ponder as a worm made its way through the tree branch he was standing on, causing him to reflexively jump away. It was safer out in the open, as the worms could phase through any solid object. He didn't want to be caught from behind by mistakenly thinking that the tree trunk his back had been against would provide cover.

As he jumped, the bells jingled quietly. Kakashi started as the worm abruptly stopped moving, completely motionless in midair. However, in another second, it began its relentless pursuit anew. In curiosity, Kakashi held the bells and made them clang against each other with a little more force. No, it was not his imagination. This close to the beast and rather far away from the flute, the bells' sound held more power. Determined, he continued shaking it as he slipped past the monster and made his way back towards Tayuya.

The red-haired Sound nin frowned as she continued playing, attempting to make her monsters move. Perhaps they were chasing the Copy Ninja out of her range? Convincing herself of this, she jumped forwards, momentarily pausing from her flute playing and dropping her guard.

That was all it took for Kakashi to send an explosive kunai into her body. She never even got the chance to activate the 2nd Level Cursed Seal.

With Lee

Lee zigged and zagged his way around the battlefield, avoiding the battling Akatsuki members and Sound ninja haphazardly. From time to time, someone would try and take a shot at him, but he was able to speed past those without too much difficulty. The Akatsuki were surprised by the appearance of a Konoha ninja on their turf, but they generally did not waste energy by attacking him, since he was not attacking them.

In fact, his adversary, make that adversaries, were from the Sound. Lee had at first been uneasy about fighting a person who sported an extra head on his back, but when he split into two red devils, each growing a horn from the middle of their foreheads, he did not have time to be nervous. Fighting both at the same time with only taijutsu was... difficult. And desperate times called for desperate measures, he supposed.

Jumping over an errant blast of flame and skirting a sudden upheaval of earth, he finally reached a place that would be suitable for his kind of fight. This place was... right in the middle of the incoming swarms of Sound shinobi. No Akatsuki members or allies within a 500-meter radius. Perfect.

Dodging a punch and catching a couple of the thrown kunai aimed at him, Lee reached deftly into his back pocket. Hand clenching around a smooth, cylindrical object, he silently apologized to his sensei. The fact is, one never did know when emergencies would call, and the secret weapon he held was perfect for almost any kind of situation.

Sakon rushed through the crowd after the speedy genin, cursing at his agility. _'Probably just trying to tire Ukon and me out before fighting. Useless tactics, expected from a genin... His speed is quite extraordinary, however. But it will be a fair while before either of us tire.' _

Ukon, running about ten feet to the left of his brother, glared down a Sound nin's frightened squeak as he barreled past. _'Why is the little punk running straight into the Sound territory?'_

Lee smirked as the two most powerful chakra signatures drew closer. _'Now.' _Drawing forth his weapon of mass destruction, Lee flourished his emergency sake bottle at the gaping shinobi.

"What the hell is this?" questioned one confusedly. The rest mutely agreed, staring as Lee gulped down the burning liquid. Sakon and Ukon caught up and stared with the rest of them. However, they didn't waste as much time as the others were, and took the chance to beat the genin into a bloody pulp for making them run everywhere.

Sakon leaped and threw a punch as Lee stuck out his tongue for the last drop of sake, while Ukon aimed a kick at Lee's left side. Neither connected, both barely avoiding hitting each other as Lee abruptly fell to the floor, spread-eagled.

He stared up at the sky with an expression of disdain and confusion. The world spun in dizzying circles as colors reversed themselves to create brilliant rainbows of mushed colors. Why was he here? Where was this? What was the wonderful feeling of nausea building up inside him caused by? Why were those strange looking devils trying, and failing, to kick him on the ground as he rolled out of the way over and over again? They were moving so very slowly, as if suspended in water... Who were they anyway? Who was HE?

Lee drowsily shook his head. No, he would not fall asleep here. Not HERE, of all places. He wasn't sure why, but this was not a good place to sleep. And not while he dodged dozens of sluggish shuriken and kunai. No, not good at all. He slammed one of the devils in the face with his elbow, smashing him into the ground. Hopefully he would have learned his lesson now.

What? The other devil had disappeared. Had he been seeing double? No, that only happened when you were drunk, and drunk he was most certainly not. To be drunk would have meant that he had had sake with him. It also meant that he would be breaking the law by drinking underage. However, as a minor, he couldn't be in that much trouble anyways. But that didn't matter at all, since he couldn't be drunk. He _wasn't_.

Now he must be hallucinating, because a devil had suddenly sprouted from his shoulder, and there was no angel on the other. It said things to him that he could not understand, they were echoing too many times inside his head. What kind of attack was this? Why was the world so complicated? Did the devil really want to bring harm to him? What had he done?

Now that really was strange. His arm suddenly hurt. What the-? An evil hand was trying to pull it out! Why would that evil red hand want to hurt him? He didn't do anything wrong!

Now it was really starting to damage him. That devil really did seem like he was enjoying his pain too! Now that was just downright rude. This called for his most powerful attack yet. He would drive him out!

Unlocking the first gate seemed harder than usual. Perhaps it had something to do with the pain coursing through his entire left arm. Or perhaps his concentration wasn't as good as usual? Why would that be? No, he was sure that his ability to focus was just fine.

The second gate really was a strain. Now that devil seemed to be panting just as hard as him. That's right, he could not deal with the amount of chakra pouring through him. They shared a body, didn't they?

The third gate was near impossible. The devil was panting painfully now, and sweat poured down his face. Just a little bit more and he would get out.

The fourth _hurt_. Searching within the suddenly hard-to-reach passages of his mind, he could remember that his limit had always been five gates. But opening the fifth one had proved disastrous in the past. Could he risk doing it again? Was it even possible at this point?

But he suddenly discovered that he didn't need to. The devil had finally popped out of his body and now lay on the floor, gasping for air. As he watched, it returned to a man again and lay still, though whether he was unconscious or dead, it was hard to tell. Glancing over at the devil he had defeated earlier, he discovered that it had returned to its past from as well.

The exhaustion that weighed down his body was not something to be ignored. Darkness enveloped him as the last bit of consciousness left his mind.

Shuya stepped over the fallen genin and, after blasting away a few Sound nin, carried him back to the Akatsuki's side of the clearing. Around him, hundreds of Orochimaru's minions lay unconscious or dead, beaten into the ground by the sole Konoha ninja of the battle without the green spandex-wearing hero himself even realizing what he had accomplished.

"Impressive kid." Commented Kisame as Shuya passed by him. A few other cloaked Akatsuki members agreed by nodding. Lee had gained the respect of the some of the most feared shinobi ever.

With Shika and Neji

Kidoumaru perched on the cliff's edge, gazing down at the battle that was taking place about a hundred feet below. He was supposed to take on two measly genin, one already exhausted before the battle even started and the other a strategic ninja who did not have any real attacking skills besides the basics. It wasn't even worth the effort. That's why he had decided to play a game.

The rather large spider he had summoned had nestled itself into a nearby crevice of the cliff wall. From it came hundreds, perhaps even thousands, of tarantula-sized spiders that were deadly poisonous, fast, had jaws large enough to puncture almost any animal skin, and could spew webs to boot. They were the perfect arachnids.

Then why was it taking so long for them to accomplish such a paltry objective as this? It had lost its amusing aspects quite a while ago.

Shikamaru and Neji had discovered something interesting, and yet completely useless in their situation. Shikamaru, as you all know very well, uses shadows to capture and bind his enemy. Neji uses his own chakra to destroy his adversary's chakra and also to defend himself. What they had discovered was that chakra does not have a shadow. It was a shame, really. If chakra had a shadow, then perhaps their battle would have been at least a small bit easier.

And they really did need a breakthrough soon.

Neji was dead tired. He could barely keep his Byakugan activated, and even then it kept fading and then returning weakly. At times his sight became so blurry that it may have been better to just leave it off. But they needed that 360 degree vision to be able to foresee when Kidoumaru finally decided to join their merry dance himself.

Shikamaru, never really the outgoing, energetic type, felt like flopping over and sleeping. He was not nearly as tired as Neji, as all he had to do was keep swatting those stupid spiders, but he could still feel his energy slipping away. He had been racking his head for plans, but still nothing could magically appear. Where had his super-genius IQ gone?

They had no more time for speculation as Kidoumaru decided to simply end this boring battle. Using chakra to slide down the cliff's nearly vertical wall, he began activating the curly Cursed Seal so that he could extract the golden spider spines from his mouth. After chewing disgustingly on the sticky mass of saliva, he withdrew six golden daggers, one to each hand, strongly resembling the furry legs of a spider.

Only one thought entered both Neji and Shikamaru's mind.

"Gross." They voiced aloud.

"Not yet." Replied Kidoumaru, spitting forth a long, unbroken branch of golden spit from his mouth which narrowly missed impaling Neji, followed by a volley of all six daggers at Shikamaru, who dived behind a rock in order to dodge.

Kidoumaru found a ledge to stand on about halfway down the wall and smoothly landed, spitting a couple sticky spider web traps around the sheltered genin below. Should they move carelessly, they would be mere flies fluttering in his web.

"Think up a plan." Neji commanded, trying to rest his eyes without fully withdrawing his supernatural vision.

"It's too troublesome." Shot back Shikamaru. "I've been trying. All I have are low-chance plans."

"Tell me the best-chance one. I can't keep this up." Muttered the Hyuuga tiredly. He gestured vaguely in the direction of Kidoumaru. "He'll just sit up there until we come out you know. And I think I hear more of those spiders crawling down."

Shikamaru snatched a peek and belatedly confirmed this thought. "I can't reach him with Kage Mane here. You're going to have to strengthen my shadow."

"And how do you propose I do that?" sighed Neji. "Make a parachute out of your jacket, I suppose?"

"..." Glared Shikamaru uncharacteristically (long word!). "There's no wind to raise it and the shadow has to go up a cliff. I'm going to make a break for it and run up there as fast as I can. You distract him by throwing lots of kunai and rocks or whatever you can find. Those objects will create enough shadows, added to the cliff's natural crevice shadows, for me to make a strong line long enough to get to those crawling spiders. Each of those has a shadow as well so hopefully it will be enough to reach him. I'll keep running up until he's caught, just in case."

"You're going to be hurt. I can't possibly distract all six arms at once." Neji was uneasy, Shikamaru's plan was not nearly as well-thought out as usual, and had a distressing element of danger. "Plus, once he's caught, what then?"

"I can handle hurt. I'll dodge enough to not get killed. And, it's easy once he's under my control. That _is _a pretty high cliff you know. Just a step or two forward would do it."

"When?" asked Neji, grabbing all of his weapons out of his kunai pouch and activating Byakugan fully.

"Now." Shikamaru deftly jumped over a web trap and began his charge towards the cliff. At the same time, Neji jumped on top of their cover and threw kunai after kunai and shuriken after shuriken up at the spider-nin.

Kidoumaru reacted by catching all the weapons thrown at him until he had one for each arm (six) and threw them down at Shikamaru, who was nearing the wall. The spiders still relentlessly scurried down towards the lazy ninja, eager to feed.

As the Kage Mane stretched thinly up the cliff, it used every single dark spot that it could, sometimes winding to and fro just so that it could make use of each natural shadow available. Kidoumaru, preoccupied with catching ever weaker-thrown kunai, failed to notice the creeping shadow until it was too late.

A second later, he was falling through the air.

Author's Notes: Horrible ending. Horrible chapter. Yes, I know. Lack of Akima, and Itachi. And to top it all off, I will probably not be able to update for awhile. You hear me?

**I WILL NOT BE ABLE TO UPDATE FOR AWHILE! **

So you people out there, just for the record, I will not abandon the fic. In fact, as soon as I've recovered from the mental trauma caused by my AP history test, the empowerment project that is very stupid and should die that I haven't started on, SAT II for hist, and other stuff that threatens my writing time and brain cells, I will continue to update. And hopefully the chapters will return to their normal length, meaning 10 or more pages. I've been busy lately... So... sorry? The chapters will hopefully be better too once I 'un-stress' myself.

Sorry! Please review. Estimate for updating... end of May? By Itachi's birthday for sure. Which is June 9th. (Thank you readers who informed me of that. And you know what, I'm going to put FLUFF because it's high time I actually did something with the pairing besides mutual acknowledgement.) C ya then!


	19. The Most Powerful Technique

Hey peoples! That's right, I'm back! This is finals week... at the time that I'm writing this. However, when I post it, I'll have just taken my last final and it will be Itachi's birthday!

HAPPY BIRTHDAY ITACHI! May you kill many more innocents!

Review Responses:

faith b- Well, I'm not sure what to say except... THANK YOU! Yeah, I know you're lying just to make me feel better since your story 'My Murder Came First' is infinitely better than mine! (sobs in jealousy in background) Ehehe.. I'm not good at drama. I thought it sounded pretty cheesy... This chapter is too, but eh. I tried, I really did! I tried! Beginning is choppy, sorry about that. Once again, thank you and come again!

HikaruOfArrow- Waaah, I want to make an Itachi fan club now! I guess I probably could, but you know, that requires energy and determination and stuff... and I'm alot like Shikamaru... plus the school year is almost over. Just those wonderful finals to look forward to! Thanks and come again!

NanamiYatsumaki- Don't worry, I'm going to come around sooner or later and steal all of your stuff... mwahaha... Especially that ring. Btw, my wristband hasn't come yet... do you think it got lost or the person didn't send it or something? Sigh... You wished Itachi a happy birthday didn't you? DIDN'T YOU! (eyes suspiciously) Of course you did. Sigh, I wish I could absorb science stuff like other people... the only way I survive that class is just memorizing the way to do problems, I don't actually understand any of it. XD Thanks for yelling at the flamer for me. Yeah, I think that everyone is a bit of a critic on other people's writing, but I don't ever post it if it's bad unless I can think of a way to help them out. Like... constructive criticism, ya know? I don't mind if your reviews are long! Reviews that are long or short, they're all good... Bleah... finals... thanks and come again!

Peter Kim- Yup, she does. That's exactly why I made her NOT fight them! That would be too easy! (Actually, Akima isn't all that good at fighting yet...)

crazy-antman- I WILL! Well, I guess you could call this update sorta 'soon'.

Yo!- Thank you! Yeah, I'm over smile's evilness. That was my first flame, and I was expecting those in my first few chapters, not when I got almost to the end of the story, so it just kind of hit me by surprise. Um, there was a small amount of Sakura-bashing somewhere.. I think it was when Itachi was in disguise and went into Konoha... I can't remember, it was pretty early on. Then again, I may have just made her act the way she usually does. XD I guess you could call that bashing. Thanks and come again!

loveable-M- Ehehe... um, hugging counts as fluff right? Of course it does! Cause that's pretty much all that happens... the fights took up more space than I thought. And I agree wholeheartedly! Finals SUCK! Thanks and come again!

DebbieUchihaUzumaki- Thank you! I'll do my best to update regularly over the summer, but I have community service and a health class to take... and driver's ed...and other stuff... Bleagh, I'll try! Thanks and come again!

XoXSilverDragonXoX- Yeah I know! I just wanted to get all the Sound Four fight stuff out of the way so that I could concentrate completely on this part of the story. No! No stressing! I've kind of adapted a Shikamaru-ish behavior. I don't feel nervous at all, even though it's finals week. And it's not because I feel particularly PREPARED or anything... I mean, I'm not even done with my speech for English which is due 2 days from now.. but it's all like, eh, I'll do it tomorrow even though I have time now. Well, maybe it's because I have to answer all these reviews! XD Thanks and come again!

Pbjsandwich- Waah... I rested! I did my AP and SAT II for hist! But I'm afraid that the chapter that everyone was waiting for is not nearly as good as it could be...I'm sorry, I have failed you. (bows, then grovels)

Turtle Kid- Thank you! See! (looks at other reviewers) I have one person who thinks that going slow between Itachi and Akima is more realistic and better! Ha! Thank you again! Eheh, kinda jumps a bit forward in this chapter because everyone was bugging me about it. And I did promise. I always keep my promises! Your friend sounds really nice. Patience is a good virtue, too bad I don't have it. I'll wait, but I'll feel like yelling and jumping around inside... XD Thanks and come again!

RedRiver04- Aha, Itachi, not OOC? Oh, come now. Can you imagine Itachi getting up in the morning, all sleepy and with his hair messy? Does he reach into the fridge and take out a carton of milk, put it into a mug, add chocolate syrup, stir it up and blow on it with a fire jutsu to make it hot? Then does he add marshmallows? Mmm... I'm making myself want hot chocolate now. Dang. But wutev, I think Itachi and chocolate milk fit. Even though they don't. Eh. Thanks and come again!

Ookami Youma- Naw, the story is almost done, so that's ok. Thanks for the offer and the review though!

Hiira- Yeah, Itachi... gotta love him and his masochistic behavior. I just wanted to get all those fight scenes out of the way so that I could focus solely on Itachi and Akima this chapter. Otherwise I would be tempted to keep switching back and forth whenever I ran out of ideas for one or the other. Hopefully, this way, it will turn out better. Thank you and come again!

Delamern- Ugh, AP test wasn't too bad. Actually, it was. I really hope I passed... I messed up on the last essay. Sigh, nothing I can do about it now though, so what's the use of worrying? P Thanks and come again!

The Most Powerful Technique

"Is that it?" asked Akima, gesturing ahead to a very large tree with what looked like a small mansion located in its roots.

"Yup. Sasuke-teme, Fuzzy Eyebrows, and I were kept in that part," said Naruto, pointing at a small segment jutting out from the main compound. There was a hole in the stone blocks that was haphazardly covered up with some wooden boards, presumably where Lee had smashed his way through to escape with Naruto.

Akima leaned back into the tree trunk, sighing. "So, now what? Charge in yelling and screaming?"

"Sounds good to me," replied Naruto, grinning. "But I have a feeling that the others might have something else in mind." He turned his head upwards to look questioningly at Itachi, Gaara, and Killua, who were lounging about on the upper tree branches, staking Orochimaru's place out.

"There are no guards," said Itachi. "None at all." His eyebrows drew together. "They must be all out on the battlefield. Orochimaru must have known we would come for Sasuke. He would not leave himself open like this unless he had something planned."

"And we have no way to prepare for it because we have no idea what it is. Why think in circles, let's go!" said Killua impatiently. Gaara, beside him, gave the smallest inclination of his head to agree.

"In the front door?" said Akima.

After a moment's hesitation, Itachi nodded. "We'll take the suspiciously easy path."

A blast of wind sang through the trees as the five shinobi jumped down into the snake's territory. The grass ruffled and loose leaves were stripped from their branches to fly away into the incoming night.

With Oro

From within his dark chamber, Orochimaru suddenly looked up from the ancient giant scroll he was reading. Snake eyes narrowing in the dimly lit chamber, he smirked for a second before calling Kabuto before him.

"What is it, Orochimaru-sama?" asked the white-haired shinobi, crouching down on the cold stone floor.

"Bring Sasuke-kun to the main chamber. I will be there shortly."

Kabuto nodded once. "Then I presume they have come?"

Orochimaru hissed, eyes reflecting the fluttering candlelight. "Wake up Kimimaro too."

Kabuto took that as a yes and poofed off to do his master's bidding.

With Akima

Landing lightly on the rough dirt, Akima stared up at the massive doors before her. They seemed to stretch up and up and up, polished handles gleaming dully in the sunset's red light high out of her reach.

"How the hell do we open it?" she said reaching forward to place a hand on the smooth wooden surface, as if pushing on it would move the solid wooden block.

"We could all push it," suggested Naruto, but even he looked a flabbergasted by this unforeseen problem.

"It looked a lot smaller from up there," said Killua, crossing his arms. "Shall we blast it into smithereens?"

"I think we should just step inside," said Itachi, walking to stand right in the center of the two doors. He took a single step forward, straight through the illusion. The others looked at each other with upraised eyebrows, shrugged, and followed after.

To Akima's chagrin, they faced a long corridor of... doors! Flaming torches lined the walls that cast flickering shadows in every direction. Itachi turned back to glance questioningly at them.

"Anyone here have a good sense of direction or unnatural luck?" he asked. Akima glared and shook her head. _'He knows what my feelings on doors are.' _When no one else answered, Itachi sighed and ran a hand through his hair.

"Let's see what's at the end then." And so they paced down the long hallway, footsteps echoing around spookily. Every so often, Itachi would suddenly jerk open a door, as if on instinct, only to relax and shut it quietly. Akima would jump every time he did so, ready for battle, and was always disappointed when nothing showed itself.

'_I'm going to prove that I don't need anyone's protection,'_ thought Akima. _'I'm sick of Itachi always looking out for me. I'll show him!' _

Finally, after many minutes of walking, the end showed itself in double doors. Akima steeled herself for whatever lay beyond, eyes narrowing as Itachi kicked open the doors with blinding speed.

Light poured in, causing everyone to flinch and raise a hand to protect themselves from the unwelcome luminosity. When Akima's eyes adjusted, she gaped at the very familiar looking walls.

"It's a maze," stated Killua unnecessarily. "Orochimaru used to be in the Akatsuki, didn't he? I thought that the door corridor was familiar. To think that he based his fortress off of it..."

"I thought that _you _made the maze, Itachi," said Akima. "I guess you created it before Orochimaru left then, huh?"

"I didn't create the maze, just the enemies inside it," said Itachi. "But if this maze is like the Akatsuki one, then..." He looked over at Killua expectantly. "Killua should be able to lead us through with ease."

"Ch. Why is it even here if it's just like the Akatsuki one?" Killua moaned, strolling down the memorized path as if he had gone through it every day of his life, which was very close to true. "It's as if he _wants _us to-" A trapdoor suddenly opened underneath the unsuspecting boy and with a startled yell, Killua only barely managed to catch the edge of the opening with one hand. Pulling himself out quickly, he stared down at the dark square in the ground.

"Spikes at the bottom!" he said, waving cheerfully at everyone else, who had frozen to the ground in surprise. Akima turned to look at Itachi.

"You didn't see that?" she questioned, eyes wide. Itachi hesitated and shook his head.

"I... wasn't really paying attention. But it will not happen again. It is obvious now that things are not as innocent as they seem." Itachi glanced at Akima and jerked his head, his eyes telling her to get behind him.

"Urgh," moaned Akima, complying, hands shoved deep into her pockets around the kunai. _'So much for being prepared.'_

"Well, looks like I'm going first," said Naruto.

"No, I am," spoke up Gaara from behind them all. "My sand can protect everyone from almost anything." When Itachi nodded in agreement, everyone resumed walking, Gaara in the lead, and Akima last of all.

With Gaara's sand stretched out in front of them, covering the walls and floor in its effort to find hidden traps, it seemed as if nothing could penetrate. The muffled _thunk_s of kunai and shuriken being shot into the sand could be heard along the walls, and the swift opening of holes in the ground were covered over immediately. Meanwhile, Gaara did not even have to lift a finger.

Who knows how it happened, perhaps there was some hidden catch that got stuck, or perhaps it was simply made that way, but however it happened, it did, and that was all that mattered. Akima had thought it odd when she had heard that telltale click behind her, since the place was pretty much dead silent. When she had turned around, it had been in curiosity, not instinct or fear or ninja reflexes or anything of the sort.

The barrage of kunai shooting straight at her came as quite a surprise. It's really weird when time slows down to allow you to do some thinking. Or perhaps it only seems to slow down because you're thinking really fast. Either way, Akima had one of these quick decisions placed upon her. She could try and dodge, in which case all the kunai would shoot into Itachi's back (unlikely, but plausible) or she could stand there and get hit. Hmmm.

Or she could catch them all. There were only... Akima counted. Five. Only five. She could handle that... right?

There was a low roaring sound as time returned to normal speed, and Akima acted fast. She caught the first kunai between two fingers, a feat that she would normally be excited about, and quickly switched it into her palm and used it to knock the other oncoming kunai away with little clinks.

"...Ha! I'm not as good as you guys, but I can at least protect my _own _ass!" she said, grinning at everyone (especially Itachi) and flashing the 'victory' sign.

Itachi made a 'hn' sound and turned away. Akima sighed at his reaction and hung her head. _'I guess that was pretty cheesy...' _she thought, miserably trailing after the group. But then a sudden thought snapped her to attention. _'He didn't tell me to get into a safer spot! That means... that he... acknowledges my ability! ...w00t.'_ She did a mental dance and began to smirk at Itachi's emotionless back as he walked in front of her.

And so they continued through the maze until finally reaching a large metal door. It seemed to glow forebodingly in the dimly lit chamber. Perhaps it was the cold rush of wind that blew from the barely visible slit between the floor and the heavy metal entrance, or perhaps the eerie silence that had been following them since Akima's last words, but there was a long hesitation before anyone made any move to open this final entryway. For it was indeed the last blockade before the end of the journey. One last threshold to cross before their adventure was finished.

Akima let out a long, loud yawn. "Are we going in or not?" she moaned, crossing her arms in a bored fashion.

"We're going in." said Itachi, eyes lighting up in anticipation of a revenge that ran much deeper than Sasuke's, much more calculated and logical than any blind fury of a family massacre. Today would settle everything.

In the stories of old, the battles were always between opposites. Dark and bright, good and evil, left wing and right wing, heaven and hell. In those stories, there was always the clear-cut protagonist, whose way of vanquishing the other side was the right way, and he always triumphed. Good guys always win; it's a known fact in all of the fictitious world. There have seldom been stories of evil versus evil, or confusion between which side is the 'right' side (X-Men is one). However, the side that the story is told from is usually adopted as the side to root for. If the story were told from the other point of view, might some opinions change? Some facts be lost or jumbled? Which is up and which is down?

Itachi is most definitely an intriguing character. He is portrayed as evil, acts evil, is part of an evil organization, does evil deeds, and generally fits the part right down to his vampiric appearance. But is he really evil? Do we know the entire story? Some of you who read the manga might, but I don't. And even if you do read the manga, there are still parts that will always remain untold. Omitted, lost, never brought up until the creator of Naruto sees it fit to pull these facts up and reveal them to everyone, persuading readers to believe this or that or to be all the more unsure. And still, hundreds, thousands more secrets lie hidden.

Itachi doesn't feel like opening up just now. He might explain later if you bribe him. And even then he most likely won't. Why? He'll need another bribe to answer that. What bribe? He might answer... but most likely not. He's Uchiha Itachi, after all.

"And you have come." The sneer in the voice was clearly audible, even before the door had finished creaking its way open, dragged down by its own weight and leaving white semicircular marks on the hard stone floor.

"_We _have," replied Naruto with his usual forwardness. "And if you don't mind... we'd like to stay and chat a bit."

The hiss that echoed through the darkness in response was filled with cold amusement. "Kyubi-chan, is it? How nice of you to stop by... I'm guessing you came by to see an old friend?" A thin, rattling chuckle echoed around the room as the candles flared from the rush of wind caused by the door opening. All eyes drew to the small lump stationed on the floor before a wooden throne.

"...Sasuke?" Naruto's voice somehow did not echo. It sounded quite hollow, in fact, disembodied, disbelieving that the frail-looking heap of human was indeed the rival he once knew. He did not stir.

Akima almost ran forward to check on the ex-Konoha ninja's health, but was stopped by a sudden hand on her arm. Itachi stared down at her sternly, his eyes clearly stating 'don't'. Akima backed down, but not without an anxious glance towards Sasuke's fallen form.

"Your friends seem to be worried about you, Sasuke-kun. Don't you think you should get up and greet them? Such rudeness." Orochimaru's taunting voice caused Sasuke to twitch, and without so much as a groan, he hoisted himself to his feet, tottering slightly before standing straight and tall. To Itachi and the rest of the group, he only showed his back, instead facing the pale man on the throne expectantly. The candles flickered, and the inky blots of the Cursed Seal on the back of his neck and arms shone in the sudden blaze of light.

"Why don't you welcome your _best_ friend properly, Sasuke-kun?" No sooner than the words had left Orochimaru's mouth, Sasuke was running across the room at superhuman speed. Naruto, equally enraged, let out a yell and went charging haphazardly straight towards the second red-eyed prodigy. There was a flurry of flailing limbs as punches and kicks were blocked and countered in successive motions that made it near impossible to see anything that was going on. Not that anyone had much time to watch anyway.

Itachi had ignored the fight all together, and was practically on top of the snake sennin before he slithered out of the way at the last second. The throne exploded into millions of tiny splinters as Itachi's foot connected with the headrest. Barely pausing, the Uchiha withdrew a handful of shuriken with one hand and stretched string from one wall to another as he pursued the fleeing man around the room. Upon completion of his trap, he executed a flash of handseals and the tangled, nearly invisible threads grew white-hot. Orochimaru nimbly avoided the core of the strings, but a flap of his shirt burnt itself off as easily as if the strings were laser beams. And not only did it fall off, both edges of the burned area burst into flames; Orochimaru had to put it out with a quick water jutsu.

Meanwhile, Gaara, Killua, and Akima were standing around the doorway, wondering which fight they should try and help out in when they were beset with their own problems. Akima barely ducked a bunch of white fingertip bones that had flown through the threshold faster than bullets, even as Gaara's sand flew up to create a protective barrier. There was a distinct sound of more bullets hitting the other side. Gaara grimaced and stared hard at Killua, who made a 'V' sign cheekily before nodding.

'_Oh great, now they're talking telepathically,'_ thought Akima bitterly. _'Don't include me, why don't you! ...I'll just... stand here, then.'_ She let out a small sigh, though still keeping her senses alert in case of traps etc. etc.

Gaara let the sand draw back from clogging the entrance and Killua jumped onto the ceiling, peeking through. He snapped his head back as a sharp slice scratched the ceiling where his nose had previously been.

"Bit quick, isn't he?" Killua said, touching his nose to make sure it was still in one piece. "Got a real funky build, that one. Bones sticking out everywhere."

"He's Kimimaro," spoke up Akima, glad to be able to actually contribute something. "He uses his bones to attack. They can basically come out anywhere. Quite skillful and dangerous. He's deathly sick though... not sure what with."

Killua tilted his head. "And you know this how...?"

"I stole Kabuto's cards," answered Akima swiftly. "Come to think of it, where is Kabuto?"

A loud crunch in the ground answered as Akima found a gloved hand around her ankle. "Kawarimi no jutsu!"

Nothing happened.

"Um... there's nothing to switch with. Oops!" Akima put her hand on her hip and scowled at the offending hand. "Let go, or I'll... um... hmm..."

The hand pulled her under.

"Great!" said Killua, smacking a hand to his forehead. "Just flippin' great."

"Concentrate on our own problems. I think he decided to use the wall as a door instead," said Gaara, nodding at the wall to the immediate right of the sand-blocked door. No sooner had he spoken, a loud crash could be heard and a huge hole revealed itself. Killua raised an arm in front of his eyes to protect from the dust that had been disturbed and peered at the shadow of _something _on the other side of the newly created opening.

"He has a tail. A _tail_." Killua spoke unbelievingly. "A _flippin' TAIL!_"

Kimimaro didn't leave anymore time for words as he pulled himself through the newly-made entry. Whipping his _tail _dangerously, he gave an inhuman snarl before jumping at the closest person, (who happened to be Killua) extending his finger bones from the tips of his fingers to create Wolverine-like claws. Killua dodged by jumping back just out of range, but was hit anyway when Kimimaro extended his claws even further out of his hands. The injury was not serious, only five light cuts across his chest, but crimson blood swelled out ominously.

Kimimaro did not stop to allow his opponent to recover, instead sprouting a bone from an elbow and lunging at Killua's unprotected head. But Gaara's sand grabbed Kimimaro around the neck and tugged him back before he could do further damage. The white-haired prodigy was lifted into the hair effortlessly and then thrown across the room, nearly missing Naruto, who had switched from plain taijutsu to his famous ninja technique, Kage Bunshin no jutsu.

It would have been a challenge to make Sasuke look more like a vampire than he already did. The unhealthy pale pallor, the red, Sharingan-enhanced eyes, the jet black hair, the maniacal, fanged grin... all he really needed was a high-collar black and red cape or cloak (like Itachi's!). Fortunately, (or unfortunately, depending on how you look at it) the fireball that spewed forth from his mouth dispelled this image, since it is known that vampires don't breathe fire. You would think they would burn pretty well, being all dead and decaying and stuff. Kage Bunshins seem to burn pretty well too.

Soon enough, there were only a couple Naruto's left standing. They were panting hard as they attempted numerous attack patterns, but Sasuke was still able to avoid every punch and kick that came his way.

"Sasuke! Snap out of it, dumbass!" Naruto shouted as his last clone poofed out. Sasuke ignored him, already completely overwhelmed by the Cursed Seal. Smirking slightly, lightning blue chakra began to crackle around his hand ominously, making his hair stand up even more than it did before.

"If you won't wake up... then I'll _make _you!" snarled Naruto, putting his hands together. Everyone's heads turned in the room as they sensed the massive amount of chakra building within the fox child.

Itachi's eyes narrowed with suspicion.

Orochimaru's eyes, in contrast, widened and he adopted that crazy, pedophilic look that comes on his face whenever he talks about Sasuke. (ewwww, you guys all know you see it)

Kimimaro was, duh, emotionless.

Gaara had on his 'shocked' expression, which was basically just a small widening of the eyes and a slight frown.

Killua was grinning.

Akima... wasn't in there.

Naruto smirked as he felt the chakra building within him reach its peak. At last, his secret, most powerful technique was ready.

"_HAREM NO JUTSU!"_

The room filled with a huge cloud of smoke as countless numbers of naked female clones poofed in.

"_Sasuke-sama!" _they squealed. (I can't believe I'm writing this)

Sasuke's face deadpanned. The Cursed Seal and Chidori shrank away as he fell over, stiff as a board.

Itachi held his eyes decidedly shut, a nerve working in his temple.

Ugh, you don't want to hear about Orochimaru...

Kimimaro still held his emotionless face, but it now seemed like he had gone brain dead.

Sand was covering Gaara's face. (The sand is supposed to protect him whether he wills it to or not! Naruto's technique is very harmful!)

Killua was out on the floor and had blood streaming out of both nostrils, his eyes gone swirly.

Akima was on the lower floor. Thank God. She might have killed someone. Like the author. Sorry people, I was in desperate need of ideas.

Sitting up, Akima coughed twice, before covering her mouth and staring at the dark room around her. She glanced upward and saw the hole in the ceiling where she had been pulled under. It was at least 10 feet above her head.

'_I could reach that... but... there's someone down here to take care of first.' _Akima thought, glaring around in the darkness. There were distant sounds of something rustling somewhere, but she could not place it. She heaved herself to her feet, wary of any attack.

However, she was unsuspecting of another underground attack. Once again, the hand reached out and grabbed hold of both her ankles. As she felt the pull, her hands flew together to form the seals that all ninja should know.

"Kawarimi no jutsu!" This time, a piece of concrete put itself in her place as Akima was transported a few feet away. Kabuto, upon discovering the replacement, poofed out from under the chunk of ceiling and came out into the open, hands already glowing green.

Akima frowned, calling up memories of when she had last seen that technique. _'That's that medical technique or something... it can cut through the skin without breaking the surface... can't let him touch me!' _

Kabuto lunged as Akima jumped back, forming hand seals rapidly. "Kage Bunshin no jutsu!" A dozen or so clones poofed in, surrounding the real Akima. _'This way he won't be able to tell which is real... I hope.' _

Akima and her clones moved to surround Kabuto, drawing kunai. Kabuto looked around uneasily. The eerie green glow continued to pulsate around his palms.

With a sudden yell, three clones faked a move forwards at him. Kabuto shifted as he was about to move, his attention on the three clones who were now jumping back while throwing kunai and shuriken. Behind him, a clone attempted to do a low kick to sweep his feet from under him, but he jumped into the air, doing a neat somersault and landing outside the circle of clones. Immediately, a clone appeared behind him and held a kunai to his neck none too gently.

"Do you surrender?" Akima asked, trying to sound confident.

"Of course not. Orochimaru-sama needs my help, and you are a hindrance." Kabuto replied before disappearing into smoke. _'A Kawarimi?' _Akima thought, gritting her teeth in aggravation. _'He's probably already on the upper level.' _She started running back to where she had previously fallen down before stopping herself suddenly, almost falling over in the process. _'Wait. It can't be Kawarimi... there was nothing in his place. Must be Bunshin no jutsu then... which means that he has to be close by...' _

As soon as she thought this, Akima whipped around, only to feel cold metal on her neck.

"Now, let's cooperate, shall we? If not..." the steel dug deeper into her throat. Akima said nothing, berating herself for letting her guard down at the most inopportune moment. "Am I clear?" Kabuto asked. The kunai's pressure lifted enough for her to speak.

"...Yes."

Up there-------

"..." Gaara silently watched Killua on the floor. He was out cold, because of both the blood streaming from the five scratches on his chest and Naruto's all-powerful jutsu. Slowly, Gaara turned to Kimimaro, who was still in a daze. The sand on the ground began to swirl faster and faster as Gaara's face contorted, one hand shakily reaching up to clutch his own red hair.

Itachi growled, a rare show of emotion. Try as he might, he could not damage Orochimaru at all. He had cut the snake sennin's hair and clothes numerous times and lightly burned his arms twice, but there was no actual injuries. In contrast, Itachi had one bruise around his left arm, which he had thrown out to break his crash into a wall. His clothes were a bit dusty, but that was it.

Also, Orochimaru absolutely refused to let his gaze come anywhere near Itachi's Sharinganfied eyes. Once you knew about the effects of the Mangekyou Sharingan, it was pretty simple to avoid, if you were careful.

If he could just distract him with something, anything, if Naruto would do another Harem no jutsu, then hopefully he could end the battle quickly.

"Orochimaru-sama!"

Kabuto held a kunai to Akima's neck while holding her wrists crossed behind her back. "I found something you may find interesting."

Orochimaru turned, that sinister smirk once again making its way onto his stark white face. "That girl? Is that..."

"Yes, Orochimaru-sama."

"You're sure?" Orochimaru whispered, eying Akima in a way that made the hairs on the back of her neck stand straight up. She didn't like the look he was giving her at all.

"Yes, Orochimaru-sama. The seal..." Kabuto flipped her around, still keeping the kunai on her neck. He used two fingers to pull down the collar of her shirt to expose the top-half of the demon seal on her back as Akima gritted her teeth in exasperation. How had Kabuto known so quickly?

"Ah... then..." the snake sennin exclaimed. "Things are bound to get even more intriguing... another demon container. In fact..." he turned and surveyed the room. "All three demons are here, in this very room..."

Itachi started, realizing the exact same thing. He had brought all the demons right into Orochimaru's domain! If they were to all fall into his hands... but that didn't matter, because Orochimaru's end was today. His attention was diverted, now was the time to attack with the Mangekyou.

Itachi teleported in front of Orochimaru, intending to catch his eye and then destroy him in the Tsukiyomi world. But the snake had expected this and his disgusting tongue shot out, making its way towards his neck. Itachi flung up both his forearms so that if Orochimaru tried to wrap around his neck, he wouldn't be able to throttle him with the arms in the way. However, instead, the tongue bound Itachi's arms together and threw him to a wall of to the side. Itachi used his feet to break his slam against the stone, and jumped to the ground.

Akima could see it coming. She knew what would happen. And the knowledge that she could not escape made everything so much worse, she couldn't bear it. The way the neck stretched out in a way that was physically impossible and how he had grown fangs and how it was all coming for her so fast and terrible and terrifying and _why _it felt like biting_ her _of all people...

'_I am weak I am undisciplined I am cowardly I am unintelligent I am slow I am dense'_

And then, an ache so terrible that she couldn't see, couldn't think, couldn't breath or speak or cry out... and then she realized that she _could _see, it was just so blindingly dark that she hadn't realized until now that you can never really _stop _seeing no matter what happens...

Even Kabuto had not expected Orochimaru to act so quickly, and his ninja reflexes had kicked in at the last moment, forcing him to jump back. Akima fell to her knees.

"Akima!" Itachi held her shuddering form against himself. She was obviously scared witless, her face had become pale, and her eyes were shut so tightly in pain that deep furrows appeared between her eyebrows. "Akima?"

A kind of strangled scream erupted from deep within her throat as she clung to his cloak tightly as if it was some sort of life raft and she were drowning. From the bite mark in her shoulder-neck junction, crimson blood poured forth with no sign of stopping, flowing down and staining her shirt red.

Akima could feel something forming on her shoulder, could feel the inside bruise that was making its way up and out of her bloodstream, could very well predict what it looked like. She could tell when it surfaced and showed itself to the outside world, as needle-sharp pinpoints seemed to thrust out of her skin and poke their way to freedom, except she knew that each pinpoint was really just another purple-black spot that made up the Cursed Seal.

'_I am a slow-learner I have no skills I have no defining attributes what makes me special?_

Itachi saw the Heaven Cursed Seal forming and pulled her closer to him, if that was possible, cursing his own weakness as she muffled her own cries in his shoulder. Slowly, as the Cursed Seal completed itself, he felt Akima becoming more and more limp in his arms, until her noise had died down completely and she would have fallen if he had not been supporting her.

'_...Demon...'_

"Oops, looks like I missed." Orochimaru mocked. Itachi could feel his fury building up inside of him, but he did not respond to the snake's derision, not trusting his own words as his jaw tightened considerably, doing its best to keep on the emotionless mask it had worn for so many years.

'_Special because...'_

He took three steps to the corner of the room and gently lay Akima down on the floor. Her face seemed to be gaunt already, face taut even in sleep. Her breathing came in quick gasps and she would twitch often, as if she was merely putting on the false impression of being unconscious, but Itachi knew better.

'_...Monster...'_

"Foolish," he said, shaking his head sadly. "Very foolish."

"Me or her?" jibed Orochimaru. "Perhaps if you had been a bit more observant..." he left off and his slimy, freakishly-long tongue flowed out in beckoning for a fight.

'_...I...'_

Usually, making a shinobi angry would result in a loss of judgment and logic, making him or her easier to defeat. With Itachi...

'_...am...'_

That was not the case.

"Disgusting." Itachi pronounced the word slowly and forcefully.

'_...Disgusting?'_

"Your life will fade into legend." His aura blazed into being beside him as if Itachi was possessed by a demon himself, his Sharingan eyes wide open and spinning wildly in a dizzying hypnotic wheel...

Author's Notes: I know. I'm so horrible. Making you guys wait for a billion years and then leaving another cliffie. Sigh... at the moment... I have no internet. Otherwise I would have posted by now... but my brother didn't keep his word... twice... This week is finals week... I had a chem test Monday and then the chem final on Wednesday, isn't that spiffy? We didn't even do any review or anything. Oh yeah... Love it... No, don't feel like killing teacher at all, nope...

The thoughts that were placed in there randomly will be explained next chapter... In fact, almost all of the questions that were left unanswered here will be answered next. Look forward to the three kickass demons!


	20. The Voices Only Talk to Me

I'm sorry this took so incredibly long! I really am sorry! Summer promotes laziness! Alright, I won't blame it on summer... (I love you, summer!) It was my fault for becoming addicted to several video games all at the same time...

Dude peoples... did you notice how much the Sasame arc in the Naruto anime is stealing stuff from my story? We have Orochimaru's long corridor lined with torches and doors, we have bamboo spikes in trapdoors, we have shuriken flying from the walls, and we even have Itachi's unbreakable chakra threads! ...It kind of scared me. (What's really sad is... I hate the latest Naruto arc... it's boring... and it doesn't make sense... and Sakura's in it...)

Review Responses:

Dragon Man 180- I love Killua's skateboard! Right now, he's kind of down and out though... but I'll try and remember to have him take it out when the story ends... The problem is, all the people who don't know about Killua will just be like 'wtf?'... but who cares? I'm writing it down to put that in. Keep reading Hunter X Hunter... Hisoka is so freaky...

ColdCypher- Thank you! Thank you thank you thank you... (continues)

HikaruOfArrow- Itachi is so awesome... omg... drool...

Rhythmic- Noo... evil, evil McDonald's and its slogan! WHYYYYYYY... Lol, jk! At least you have brain cells left to lose... mine were lost while writing this story. XD

aznpuffyhair- I'm sorry, it's just that cliffhangers seem like such good places to end chapters! They allow me to collect my thoughts about what needs to happen next! I'm really sorry, there's another one in this chapter... Here, um, I offer you these brownies in tribute! Wait, that will just make your shaking worse, won't it? Ehehe... um... gotta go! (runs away)

Crimson Insanity- Who's Akane Kiryu? (just getting image of chibi Naruto running in circles hyperactively) ...Itachi is NOT yours! Mine:D I could argue about that all day... this is obsession to its fullest extent... No! No evil minions! Face my awesome ninja skillz! Ha! XD

Kakashilova- Thank you! Of course I'll do more... I just need to finish this... and the next time I make a story it will be better! MUCH better! I hope.

XoXSilverDragonXoX- Ah, school... that evil place of torturing... Yeah, I need to edit this story alot too... but I just want to finish it first! Because it's so close to the end anyways... who knows, maybe I'll make a sequel? Lots of things would be different though. In a good way. Hopefully. Don't worry, Itachi will do his share of Oro-violence. Everybody gets to go and beat up everyone else it seems... Lots of people seemed to like the Harem no jutsu, and I was worrying about people hating me for it! XD Shows how well I know my reviewers... Freeeeee... Hey you! Update!

younggun- Yeah, Akima got bit... Sorry, I was _trying _to make everything all confusing at the end... because the pain of the cursed seal is supposed to make you pretty jacked up, right? Sasuke didn't seem to be aware of anything around him... Sorry about that again, but thanks for reviewing!

Akiko- Thanks, I love Gaara, Itachi, and Naruto too! But Itachi the most...

Itachi349- Well, I updated! Don't have to surf the net everyday anymore! Cuz the next chapter's gonna be awhile... Thank you and come again!

**Bold words are the demons talking. **_Italicized words, when used in paragraph form, are inside Akima's mind._

The Voices Only Talk to Me

"Tsunade-sama, thank you for seeing me."

The 5th Hokage leaned forward from her seat behind her desk stacked high with paperwork. She calmly folded her hands together and placed her chin on top of them in order to survey the brown-haired chuunin. "There is no problem, Iruka-sensei. What is it that you wished to ask me about?'

Iruka rubbed the back of his head nervously. "Ah well... Naruto has been out on a mission for a long time... and I was just wondering if I could have access to his mission file so that I can know when he will be returning?"

Tsunade frowned. "I do not recall sending Team 7 on a mission. Sakura-san is still here, I saw her this morning."

"Ah, yes, but Naruto told me that it wasn't a Team 7 mission. It involved Kakashi, Sasuke, and Naruto, true... but Gai's team members Neji and Lee as well as Shikamaru were involved..." Iruka let out a nervous chuckle.

The Hokage was silent. "This mission did not receive my authorization," she said coldly.

Iruka's eyes widened. "You mean that...?"

Tsunade nodded. "Kakashi is in deep shit. Shizune!"

Shizune stumbled into the room, worried by the urgency of the Hokage's call. "Yes, Tsunade-sama?"

"Call me four teams of ANBU. Now."

"Got it." Shizune poofed out. Iruka looked unsurely at the tense Hokage.

"You can leave, Iruka-sensei. Thank you for bringing this to my attention." Iruka bowed and left, feeling fidgety about Naruto's safety.

'_Why would Kakashi not authorize his mission?'_

In Orochimaru's compound...

"Akima!" Naruto shouted from his vantage point on the other side of the room. _'That snake bastard bit her! Just like he did to Sasuke!' _A low growl rumbled from his throat. _'Unforgivable!'_

Sasuke lay on the ground, unconscious. The Cursed Seal marks had withdrawn into their Sharingan-shaped seal on his shoulder-neck junction, and it didn't seem as if he would wake up any time soon. Naruto hefted him up soldier-style and crossed the chamber to Akima's side.

Itachi was about as furious as it was possible for him to be, taking into account all of his training to keep himself emotionless, no matter the situation. But attacking one of _his _subordinates... actually, his _only _one... it did not fare well with him.

"Listen, snake..." Itachi could feel the throb in his jaw with the effort he put into keeping a calm visage. "If you so much as _touch_ one of my subordinates again..."

"Itachi! Something's wrong with Akima!" shouted Naruto. "Her Cursed Seal is...!"

Itachi turned and watched with growing alarm at the way Akima was convulsing on the ground. The Cursed Seal was already spreading. She was beginning to wake.

"That _is _odd," said Orochimaru. "It usually takes a great deal more time than that. Usually they will stay in a comatose state for at least one night, since that's generally how long it takes to convince a shinobi to accept my power."

"Orochimaru-sama, perhaps the demon is changing the way that the Cursed Seal acts?" asked Kabuto, stepping towards Akima uncertainly. Itachi blocked his way and Kabuto backed off quickly.

"Probably. We'll have to keep her." Orochimaru smirked. "As well as the sand demon over there. He's acting up too."

Gaara snarled at the snake sennin, still clutching his head as white-hot pain shot through his temples.

"But the girl is the weakest of the demons here. It was a good idea to test the Cursed Seal on her first. If the demon chakra and the cursed chakra mix, it could make an indestructible walking weapon... But if they are not compatible, who knows what the results will be?" Orochimaru turned to Itachi, grinning. "What are you going to do, Itachi? I am the only one who knows how to remove a Cursed Seal. Will you kill me?"

Itachi stared emotionlessly at him, and did not reply.

Meanwhile, with Akima...

'_Where am I?'_

_She was floating in a dark eternity. There was no difference between having her eyes open or closed, no lights, nothing to discern anything from anything else. She attempted to step forward, but could feel no solids beneath her feet, but was unable to fall, and ended up exactly where she had been before, which was... nowhere. _

'_Hello!' she called. 'Anybody out there?'_

'_**Yes...'** A low purr seized her, so deep that it vibrated inside her head, inside her bones. It made her stomach churn and her eyes squint closed, hands clasped over her ears in a futile attempt to keep the noise out. _

'_Who...?' Akima questioned, immediately closing her eyes and wincing in anticipation of the next blow to her eardrums._

'_My name is unknown even to me.' The voice came from much closer this time, and much quieter._

'_Well, do you know where we are then?' said Akima, choosing to ignore the voice's puzzling answer. _

'_We are deep in the depths of your pitiful mortal mind,' it replied bemusedly. 'This is the first time you and I have had a chance to talk.'_

_A great roar, like a tornado swiftly approaching, cut through the darkness before Akima could have a chance to respond. Akima felt her very existence shudder. 'What was that! And you say we're in my mind? But there's nothing here! And what's with the "pitiful mortal" insult? Oh... you're my demon aren't you?'_

'_Listen kid... time is running out. Your body cannot take the damage that the blasted Cursed Seal is inflicting upon it. That quake was most likely your body trying to get that "foreign chakra" out of you chakra system. It won't last long; you are too weak. And yes... your mind is almost empty...'_

'_Hey!' yelled Akima. 'I'm sure there's something somewhere...' she trailed off as she looked around and found nothing in sight._

_The demon chuckled, the almost-purrs rumbling as another quake shook the essences of Akima's mind. 'You still have much to learn, kid... and you could not fill up all this space even with several of your lifetimes. But more importantly, you need to save yourself, and my living space.'_

'_Yeah, surviving would be nice... And I guess my mind is pretty comfortable, then? Care to inform me of the way out?' replied Akima, crossing her arms._

_This time the tremor that ripped through the darkness was much more severe and pain shot through Akima's entire body, causing her to let out a groan as she rubbed at her head._

'You_ can't get out... and since _you _are your mind at the moment, rubbing your head does nothing. That's just a natural reaction to the pain.' Akima stopped rubbing and let her arms drop to her sides. 'You are going to have to forfeit control of your body to me so that I can burn out the cursed chakra. And while I'm at it, I can get rid of that annoying snake-man who dares to wish for immortality too.' The demon ended with a low growl, once again vibrating the non-existent bones of Akima's mind's essence._

'_Whoa, whoa... you've taken over my body before, why do you need to ask this time? I've felt your chakra!' Akima winced as another tremor shook the impossibly large cavern._

'_No, before, you were still mostly in control. I have to admit that I had been very bored cooped up in this place and wanted a taste of the outside again... which is why I attacked your black-haired friend against your will.'_

'_Itachi? _You _tried to hurt Itachi!' _

'_Yes, yes, unfortunately for me, he knew just how to deal with us. Hey, quit asking me questions. Hurry up and give me control or you're going to lose this body!'_

'_How?' The sound of rushing liquid was filling up Akima's senses. A very familiar, overpowering scent flowed through the nothingness. 'Am I bleeding everywhere or something?'_

'_Just say it!'_

'_Um, I lend you my body, demon! ...Is that what you meant?'_

'_Good enough.'_

'_Hey, you need a name!'_

'_Why don't you think about that while you sit in here?'_

'_But...'_

'_No more questions.'_

_There was a flash of blazing orange and Akima was left by herself. 'This is going to be very boring.' Akima sighed. 'Let's see... what's a good name?'_

In reality...

"Hey Akima... calm down..." Naruto held her shoulders down as she thrashed on the floor. Blood was leaking out of one of her ears in red rivulets and the cursed seal kept growing feverishly, a few blotches blazing red and receding or expanding at a time. Beside her, Sasuke lay, still unconscious.

On the other side of the room, Gaara still struggled with his demon as Killua lay nearby. The bloody scratches on his chest had caked over and coagulated, but he was still unconscious from Naruto's Harem no jutsu.

Kimimaro was still brain dead. He seemed to have gone into a state of shock that had temporarily paralyzed him.

Orochimaru was confident. There was nothing that Itachi could do if he ever wanted the Cursed Seal removed from either Sasuke or Akima. Of course, Orochimaru knew that he would never remove them anyway. Sasuke was a valuable heir, and Akima could turn out to be an even more powerful weapon than Kimimaro.

Itachi felt, for the first time in a long time, at a loss. Orochimaru still refused to meet his eyes, so the Mangekyou Sharingan was out. If he were to attack and kill him, then Akima and his foolish little brother would never be free from the cursed seal.

Luckily, the decision was not his to make. Gaara, having been ignored for quite some time, lost control.

Growling angrily, his eyes snapped open to reveal yellow pupils surrounded by the unnatural inky black where the whites belonged. With a roar of rage, he launched his only weapon at the nearest thing that stood on two legs, which happened to be the still-in-shock bone master.

Kimimaro snapped out of his trance and barely dodged the swiftly-moving sand claws to land behind Orochimaru and Kabuto.

"I believe that we're going to have three demons in this room at the same time. Should be interesting." Kabuto smirked as he transferred green chakra to his palms. "I suppose that we are to capture all of them alive?"

Orochimaru's eyes darted back and forth as he anticipated the upcoming battle. "As many as possible, preferably all, but with the great Uchiha prodigy here..." He grinned at the glaring red-eyed ninja. "At least one should be barely alive when we finish."

"Hai, Orochimaru-sama," replied Kimimaro, bones oozing forth from his arms and shoulders.

Naruto grimaced, trying to calm the ever-growing intensity of Akima's seizure-like movements. When her struggling suddenly stopped, he breathed a sigh of relief, believing that she had passed out completely. However, this relief was quickly replaced by a terrifying fear as her eyes slowly opened, revealing golden cat-like pupils.

"**Off, kid."** Akima's voice was deep and gravelly, her fingertips steaming as hard, sharp claws grew over her fingernails. Naruto jumped back in alarm, his face a mask of shock and worry. The teeth lengthened and sharpened themselves into fine points as an angry, deep throaty snarl escaped through the parting lips. She struggled to draw air into her lungs, but her body's systems were morphing too swiftly; her lungs were expanding as her heart grew more muscular to pump greater amounts of needed blood faster; the muscles in her arms and legs became flooded with adrenaline.

And on top of all that, the Cursed Seal decided that it was time to try and take over again. Black splotches drew themselves forth from the ugly purple-black bruise on her shoulder and crawled across her skin like some kind of horrible skin disease, releasing dark purple chakra into the surrounding orange demon chakra.

"Now, it looks like demon and Cursed chakra _do _mix together nicely," Orochimaru said, his eyes lighting up with the discovery.

Akima winced as her burning hot chakra and the deathly cold Cursed chakra hit each other with a sizzle, causing even more steam to rise. **"They do _not _mix!" **she growled, feeling an itch blaze on her shoulder as the Cursed and demon chakra fought each other for supremacy. Snarling furiously, she clawed at the Cursed Seal as if to rip it from her skin.

"Orange and purple are not colors that mix well, Orochimaru." Itachi said coldly, eyes flashing as they reflected the flickering chakra. "You're killing her. Release the seal." Dotted red eyes glared at the snake sennin severely. There was definitely a silent 'or else' added to the statement. Orochimaru picked up on it and laughed.

"If they won't mix, then she might as well die." The snake sennin sneered cruelly.

"Orochimaru-sama!" Kabuto yelled, barely bringing his master's attention to the red blur that had barreled through the area where Orochimaru had stood a split second before.

"**Orochimaru!" **The Kyubi container, Naruto, slammed a hole into the stone floor in fury. **"You have gone much farther than enough!" **

"**I agree," **replied Gaara, somehow still maintaining a cool composure even under the influence of the Shukaku. **"Your time is up." **Sand writhed beneath his feet in angry swirls as his yellow-on-black eyes stared with deep hatred.

"Let's test your strength." Kabuto smirked. "I'm sorry Naruto-kun, but I'd like to try my hand at the infamous Sabaku no Gaara and his sand. I've already fought you once, anyway."

"**Scared, are you?" **growled Naruto. **"I'm glad you learned your lesson. But Gaara will kick your ass just the same. And _I _will deal with that white-haired bone bastard over there." **Kimimaro ignored the insult and took out two arm bones, one to each hand, to use as swords. His face displayed no expression.

"By choosing to fight me, you have already lost." Kimimaro informed Naruto emotionlessly.

"**Well, I would have preferred to kill the snake bastard for ever coming within 50 feet of Sasuke-teme... but I doubt the other Uchiha would have let me." **

Itachi smirked and gave a slight nod. "Good choice, Naruto-kun."

"**Fat chance, Itachi... that one is _mine!" _**Akima threw herself forward and swiped her claws at Orochimaru, who slithered out of the way, skidding several feet back.

"Now, now, don't be foolish, little _girl_." Orochimaru hissed. He raised two fingers and focused his chakra at Akima. "Let me show you how insignificant you are compared to _me_."

The Cursed Seal flared and sizzled on her neck like a red hot iron, causing her to half scream, half roar in agony as control over her body ceased. A constant pounding on her head began, as if some evil little possessed mallets were hammering on her temples unmercifully. Each blow sent waves of pain through her skull that seemed to shudder the very foundations of her mind... which they were.

'_Oi... what's happening out there!' shouted Akima from her space. The quakes had gotten much worse. Chunks of the non-existent ceiling were falling down, leaving blank whiteness above. When the black chunks hit the non-existent bottom, jagged white cracks like lightning spiked out in all directions. Akima "ran" over to expect one of the craters._

_Looking down into it, she almost got tipped in when another crash shook the limitless cavern. 'A... black hole?' _

_The swirling vortex seemed much more immense than her mind. A fierce wind sucked with enormous force at the same time as the quakes hit her mind and Akima watched in horror as another few chunks of her memories blew away into the black hole._

'_Ok... that's probably the Cursed Seal... and it's gradually eating my brain cells. Great. Let's not fall in.' Akima said to herself, crossing her arms and nodding confidently. Another pulse crashed into her mind and Akima felt the "floor" underneath her come loose, and then she was falling..._

_But at the last second she grabbed hold of the edge of the hole. 'Phew.' And then that too came loose. _

'_Shit,' thought Akima as she fell. Looking up, she saw the entire thing, a gigantic dark blob almost completely empty save for one corner which was cluttered and disorganized. She squinted and memories hit her like a slap in the face, swift and surprising._

_It was very windy, and the day's last light was nearing its end as the sun was just barely above the line that separated the sky and the land. A sole tree, its dry leaves snapping off from their branch clusters in droves, stood crookedly over two people, a woman and a child. Their voices rose and fell in volume as the wind blew ferociously. _

'_Do you know what Aki means, Akima?'_

'_No, what does it mean?'_

'_It means autumn.'_

'_Why did you name me autumn, mommy?'_

'_Because autumn is the bringer of the death, honey.'_

'_Mommy! That's horrible!'_

'_No it's not. It's natural for things to die in the end, Akima. Death is the great balancer. No matter how good or evil you were during your lifespan, you will always die in the end. It's just that... sometimes people should face their death sooner than others. It's these people that you have to watch out for, Akima, and they are yours to take care of.'_

'_I don't understand, mommy...'_

'_Well, maybe later you will... right, Akima-chan?'_

_Akima shook her head roughly, trying to clear the disorganized remnants in her head. _

'_Yeah, yeah, I get it mom! What do you think I'm trying to do! ... Well, where am I now?' her voice echoed slightly. As opposed to the blankness of her mind, this area was riddled with large gaps in which thick purple smoke spiraled upwards from. The smell was sweet but suffocating, and made her feel like retching, but it was still intoxicating, inviting. Suddenly, Akima felt the unbearable urge to jump into one of the gaps._

'_Now, why would I want to do that?' she asked herself, as her traitorous feet shuffled closer to the smoke. 'That doesn't make any sense. I mean, it's probably not a smart thing to do.' Nevertheless, her body disobeyed her commands and came closer._

'_I don't want to,' she thought as she miserably bent closer to the smoke. 'I really don't want to.' Her feet paused. 'I'm not going in there. This is a trick.'_

'_Akima...Come here...' a voice called to her from within the hole._

'_Well now I KNOW I don't want to go in!' she shouted. Her feet skidded closer, drawn inescapably towards the gap. 'Especially when it's YOU calling me!'_

_A hand reached out of the hole to grasp its edge, and then another, followed by the head and shoulders of a woman Akima had once known very well. 'Please, Akima-chan, come here! Mommy's lonely...'_

'_Sorry mom, but I really don't want to go where you are! Not yet! When I'm older, okay!' shouted Akima as she sat down in an attempt to foil her own feet. _

'_Akima-chan...'_

_Akima bit her hand, concentrating on the pain that exploded there._

'_Akima-chan...' it did not sound at all like her mom speaking anymore. The voice had become deeper, coarser. Akima chanced a glance at her mother, who was swiftly changing into something else._

_Her hand was throbbing painfully by the time it was ripped from her teeth by a will that was not her own. She held no more control over her body._

'_Come to me...' Fearfully, she watched in horror as her once mother melted away into Orochimaru's pale face. Even the power to scream or turn her head away had been drained._

'_Why not just give in Akima? I know what you want... the power to take care of yourself, right? Independence? You don't like being protected or being treated like a dead weight to carry...'_

_Akima growled and shot the best glare that she could into Orochimaru's snake eyes. 'That's true, but... I can do it myself!'_

_The snake sennin's expression soured as a frown twisted its way onto his features. 'Don't be unreasonable. I hate it when people force me to resort to a different kind of persuasion...'_

'_Bring... it... on...'_

_Orochimaru's eyes narrowed to slits. 'As you wish.'_

Author's Notes: Before you guys start on how Akima's mom was a sadistic and murderous person that wanted her kid to kill people... let me remind you that she was a ninja (which was in the first chapter, so I'm pretty sure none of you remember) and that being a ninja basically meant being a paid murderer, so of course her ideals are not the same as those of society today.

If you're confused about the title (The Voices Only Talk to Me), it was my sad attempt at being funny... You know that bumper sticker that says 'You're just jealous because the voices only talk to _me_!'? Well, um... yeah. Lotsa mind-speak in here...

Review! Review review review! Please? Next chapter is most likely last one. Almost done... C'mon, help me for this last stretch...


	21. Game Over

Eh well... been a while hasn't it? But I did finish this before my school starts! The night before... of course. I'll likely be posting this after that though, I have no internet right now. Thanks for reading and reviewing!

I BROKE 100,000 words for this story! W00t!

Review Responses:

Dragon Man 180- Hisoka is very scary... and a pedophile. He's like Orochimaru, except worse! And I've hated clowns for a long time... even before I watched Hunter X Hunter. I used your Tora idea, but added a little something on to it. That was a good idea, thank you! Oh, and I had to have Akima do something, the demon can't do everything, right? I have to say that out of all my reviewers you have been the most loyal and most helpful and all around best reviewer ever. Thank you for your wonderful insight, comments, and guesses at the future chapters that helped me get back on track when I was stuck. Sorry to be so cheesy, but thank you so much!

Itachi349- uhhh this anime tribe thing, what is it? A fan club? I don't really have time to be online much anymore, school started today. And everything is bad! But I'll look for you if I can find the time.

XoXSilverDragonXoX- I might have a sequel someday... but probably not any time soon. God, this feels so weird, I'm wearing contacts for the first time... why is everything visible and not fuzzy? Um anyways... I hope this chapter meets your expectations! To tell you the truth, I had a lot of trouble writing over the summer, just like you said. But then, the night before school started, I suddenly sat down and cranked out 8 pages or so... the first part was written when I had no wish to write, which is why they sucks so much. Oh yeah, and the end was hurried cuz i just wanted to end the darn thing. They've had 3 off-manga arcs... bad bad bad! Though the latest one doesn't look as bad as the others. Hopefully. See, I actually like Hinata and am glad she is becoming stronger or whatever. Won't see you for awhile... but thanks for sticking with me for so long! Good-bye and so long!

aznpuffyhair- No more cliffies! See, last chapter no have cliffie. Lol, now I can join you in the hating of cliffies. Down with cliffies! Down with the authors who use them! Including me! Lol, thanks for reading!

HikaruOfArrow- Yes, Itachi is so cool... Finally put in the very tiniest bit of fluff in too. See, I find it hard to make him OOC when I'm actually thinking about it... sometimes it just comes out but other times I'm all like, "Itachi wouldn't say/do that!" Lol, thanks for keeping with me to the very end!

The One Who Creeps You Out- Hmm. Not sure what to say to that. Thanks for reviewing, anyways.

Rhythmic- Ah, the material world? Who needs that? Lol, jk... the fight was going to take place inside her mind you see, and for a good reason, too. Thanks for keeping with me! Byebye!

younggun- There it's out! The last one! A very long time later, it's out! But at least I didn't drop it right? I have to say I was tempted. Lol, thanks for reviewing!

Mystrivin- Ehehe, I'm lazy. But after looking through my story, I realized that what you were saying was true. I don't deny that I felt something very crucial was missing from my stories. I just couldn't figure out what it was (besides, you know, the utter lack of a good plot) but you really pointed it out. The problem is... I just ain't good at description. Near the end, I simply was too lazy to add it in cuz I just wanted it to end already. But thank you, I will remember that when (or if) I write a new story. Thank you thank you thank you! Lol, buhbye!

Hiira- Yes, it is very sad... but now I'm free! No more story hanging over the head! At the beginning, this story was fun to write, but lately it's been a burden, something that I can't drop, like homework. But I'm light as air! Whee... (flys off) Ok, back to the ground. Thanks for reviewing, I probably won't see ya for a while. Bye!

Lyfe.exe- I updated! Yay, all done! Thanks for reviewing!

NanamiYatsumaki- All done! No more work to keep working on! Thanks for reviewing!

Crimson Insanity- You forgot to write something! A blank review still counts tho. Or is that a fanfiction error? Oh well, thanks for reviewing! C ya later... maybe...

mike- Lol, one of the few OOC Itachi lover's? I TRIED to stick in fluff, I really did. It's there! At the end! Squint a little and use you imagination! Lol, thank you, thank you, thank you, for reviewing!

DUN DUN DUN! THE LAST CHAPTER! OH THE HORROR!

Game Over

"This is obviously _not _working too well," Naruto remarked as Kimimaro finished off all of his demon clones without blinking once. "You're pretty good. However..." He smirked as more clones appeared. "I don't know very many techniques."

"Your skill is lacking. Victory will never be yours if you continue to incessantly do the same thing over and over again." Kimimaro was getting bored. Fighting these meaningless clones indefinitely... it seemed like the demon child had learned nothing. "At the very least, try something besides simple taijutsu. Or, would you like me to..." He finished off the last of the clones with his bone sword and put the point to Naruto's neck. "..end this?" he concluded, thrusting forward.

Naruto's clawed hand moved like lightning to catch the bone and squeeze it tight, preventing movement. While Kimimaro struggled to pull it from his grasp, Naruto connected his fist and Kimimaro's face, hard.

"I disagree. Taijutsu can be very useful in these kinds of situations." Naruto smirked widely, but inside he was growing uneasy. _'That Harem no jutsu served its purpose, but I'm not used to transforming each and every one of my clones like that since I've only done it once before... my normal chakra has pretty much been used up.'_

'**_Why don't you just let me take over completely, stupid brat?' _**questioned the Kyubi sullenly.

'_If I let you take over anymore than you already have, then you would destroy everything in sight! You were out for a little while earlier, don't complain.' _ thought Naruto, grimacing at the way Kimimaro automatically recovered from his punch.

"Your power is nothing. Where is the power that was so obviously present before?" Kimimaro's eyes narrowed dangerously. "If you will not stop restraining your demon, then there is no point in fighting you any longer." With those final words, Kimimaro rushed at Naruto and thrust forward with one of his bone swords. Naruto quickly dodged, but missed the second bone sword that was coming from the side.

'_Shit!' _inwardly cursed Naruto as it cut into his side.

'**_Little fool... why must I be stuck with you?' _**growled the Kyubi as he activated his healing powers.

'_I didn't want you either!' _Naruto replied, his pain sensors on maximum. He chuckled at Kimimaro's momentarily shocked expression as the soaking rip in his side closed like a zipper.

"You can't defeat me!" he grinned shakily at the bone master.

"And neither can you defeat me," replied Kimimaro calmly. "There _is _a limit to how much you can heal yourself. If this becomes a battle of stamina, I can survive longer than you."

'_**He lies.'**_

"Ha! I'll kick your ass no matter what kind of battle this is!" shouted Naruto exuberantly. _'How do you know?'_

'**_There is something inherently wrong with that person... Look! He is already tired out.'_**

Naruto looked and noticed the subtle way Kimimaro breathed in and out in short gasps through his nose and the way that his eyes seemed too wide, as if he was fighting to keep them open. The Kyubi's suspicions were confirmed when Kimimaro swiftly brought his hand to his face to let out a short cough, and then discretely wiped his mouth with his palm.

"I can smell your blood," said Naruto calmly. "Why do you continue to fight when it is not possible to win?"

Kimimaro's eyes narrowed dangerously. "For Orochimaru-sama."

Naruto let out a snort of disbelief. "That snake bastard?"

"Yes. I owe him everything."

The Kyubi let out a loud growl. **_'This one is even more of a fool then you are, brat. He aimlessly follows one person regardless of his own ideals. This is why we demons never develop relationships... it makes one weak.'_**

'_No, you're wrong.' _Naruto silently replied. _'This guy is strong. His precious person was simply one whose ideals I do not agree with. And that is why it is my belief that he must be taken down.' _He put his hands together to form more Kage Bunshins.

"Again with the replications? Will you ever learn?" Kimimaro sighed. "It won't work this time, however. I've kept my eye on the real you."

He rushed forward, his two swords forming an 'X' as he prepared for a cross strike on the real Naruto, who seemed to be forming a strange ball of chakra with another replication.

"Rasengan!" Naruto shouted, letting his clone poof out as he roughly thrust the chakra ball at Kimimaro's shocked face. However, the bone master simply raised his crossed arms, using the two bone swords to block the blow. The excess chakra sent both Naruto and Kimimaro flying backwards.

Naruto hit the wall with a loud smack.

Kimimaro hit the Rasengan that two other clones had hurriedly been forming behind him.

The loud blast of chakra on flesh sent Kimimaro rocketing forward to hit the wall next to Naruto. The stones around him cracked and crumbled as a dust cloud rose and settled around the pair of shinobi. Neither made a move to get up.

With Gaara and Kabuto

"Let's finish this quickly." Kabuto said, smirking as his palms burned a pale green. "Orochimaru-sama would be displeased if I took too long with the likes of you."

"**I agree." **Gaara said solemnly, the only traces of him not being in complete control of himself found in his black and gold eyes and deep, rough voice. **"It would be a disappointment** **for me to not devour you in the next few minutes or so."**

"Hn," Kabuto chuckled. "Then let's begin."

Kabuto had barely finished his sentence before Gaara's sand came rushing towards him. Flipping over to the side to avoid the onslaught of sand waves, he came rushing forward, palms at the ready.

"You have sand armor right? Too bad it won't affect my attacks!" he said as he triumphantly reached for Gaara's chest. Gaara glared and more sand flew out of his gourd to block him before he could successfully make contact.

"**You talk too much, human." **Gaara said, his composure melting away as an unnatural grin spread itself across his face.

Kabuto smirked and held out his favorite weapon, the kunai whose tip was curved. An excellent tool for slitting throats. "I like talking. It seems to make you feel off-balanced."

Gaara growled and sand arms exploded out from under Kabuto, forcing him to jump to the ceiling. **"I believe you forgot that we are in a room, and that there is no escape!"**

More arms burst from both the ceiling and the floor, finally catching Kabuto around the neck and pulling him face-to-face with the sand demon.

Gaara grinned ferociously into Kabuto's wide eyes before commanding the sand to creep inside his mouth, nose, ears, basically anywhere and opening existed. In about a minute Kabuto had simultaneously choked, suffocated, and drowned to death in sand.

"Stop it." Itachi commanded, his eyes narrowing dangerously at Orochimaru's grin. The snake sennin ignored him, still recalling the dangers of the Mangekyou Sharingan. Akima had fallen to her knees, her hands tangled into her hair and her face a tortured mask.

'_I won't let you beat me!' Akima yelled, even though she felt no hope left within herself._

'_No one has ever broken free of the Cursed Seal before. I am firmly rooted into your mind. There is no technique that you can use to reach me here without hurting yourself.'_

'_None I can use...' _

'_That's right. There's nothing you can do, so just give in. It will be much less painful than resisting as you have done, and limitless power will be yours... You don't want to be a burden do you?'_

'_Nope. And I won't be!' Akima's face lit up with a new confidence. 'I told you I could do it without your help!'_

'_What?' Orochimaru was taken aback by her sudden blaze._

_Akima's eyebrows furrowed in thought. 'Now, if I can just contact my demon... ' _

"**Itachi?"** Akima rasped. **"Get over here..."**

"Why?" he didn't move, suspicious. After all, the girl could have submitted to Orochimaru's control. It wouldn't be surprising in the least. As far as he knew, no one had ever been able to break free of his mind infestation once bitten.

"**I said get over here, baka! Do you know how hard this is!"** A huge nerve pulsed in her forehead as she glared daggers at him.

'_That's her alright...' _Itachi thought, and he would have sweatdropped if he didn't suddenly remember to stay in character.

When he crossed over to her, she reached out a hand (seemingly with great difficulty) and grasped his Akatsuki cloak, digging her fingernails deep into the heavy, black material.

"**Use the Mangekyou on us,"** she said in one breath.

"...What?"

She was silent, obviously struggling to form the next words. The demonic aura fizzled and a small tendril wrapped itself around her body.

"**He's in our head do it now you idiot before he figures it out!"** she yelled, accenting her strung-together sentence by harshly tugging on his cloak to bring him closer to her eye level. In a flash Itachi understood and his three Sharingan commas had melted into the distinctive Mangekyou.

'_I believe you were about to do something...?' Orochimaru proposed, raising an eyebrow._

'_Shut up!' Akima replied viciously. She held her hands to her ears and was screaming as loud as she could inside her head, praying that her demon was listening. _'Get Itachi inside here, you stupid demon!'

'_**I heard you, you idiotic brat! Stop screaming at me!' **The demon's voice roared angrily inside the chamber so loudly that both Orochimaru and Akima cringed. _

_Orochimaru waited until the echoes died down before he spoke. 'You were contacting your demon that entire time? I overlooked that possibility... took too long poking fun at you. It will not happen again.'_

'_You're right. It won't.' _

_Akima and Orochimaru both stiffened at the new, dark voice that had drawn attention to itself. '...Itachi?' Akima asked softly. 'When did you get here?'_

'_That is not important,' he replied coldly._

'_Y-You...' Orochimaru spluttered unbelievingly. 'Why did you...?'_

_Itachi cut him off. 'Orochimaru! You expected me to attack you outside, correct? You were distracted by being half-inside Akima's mind, and left yourself open for any kind of attack _except _the Mangekyou.' He closed his eyes and dropped his head a little so that the top part of his face was shrouded in shadow. _

'_If I had gone with your plan and destroyed your physical body... You would have simply transferred the rest of your mind into Akima, wouldn't you? And she would become your puppet.'_

_Orochimaru's face grew even paler as his mouth worked soundlessly in protest. _

'_And once you gained complete control... you would have attacked me using her form, believing that I wouldn't be able to hurt my own subordinate?'_

_Akima watched silently, her face grim. Itachi knew his stuff. Orochimaru was foolish to have stood against the prodigy. _

_Itachi closed his eyes. 'Now then, I've never done this before in this kind of circumstance... I should try it out.' His eyes opened slowly, the crimson red shining forth with an unholy light that instantly hypnotized the snake sennin. _

'_Mangekyou Sharingan!' Akima watched in horror as their surroundings warped, everything shifting in and out of place randomly as a sound like a TV with no station on buzzed annoyingly in the background. Then, as if they were at a sleepover party, the lights suddenly switched off and there was complete silence. Akima blinked a few times, trying to get used to the darkness, but there was no difference between having her eyes open or closed. She shifted uncomfortably and focused on her hearing, ignoring the uneasiness that crept down her spine. Losing one's sight, her most relied upon sense, made her feel agitated and powerless to protect herself. Who knows what was out there, hidden from sight? And, even worse, was that hissing?_

'_Akima...' She jumped and spun around to find a pair of glowing red eyes staring down at her. She let out a small sigh of relief._

'_Oi, Itachi, using the Mangekyou inside my mind drags me in too, you know.' Akima crossed her arms. It didn't really matter that she was here, considering that Itachi could control everything in the Tsukuyomi, but she simply felt like pointing it out. _

'_That is apparent,' replied Itachi, blinking his eyes once, momentarily plunging his world into darkness. Akima felt a little irritated at his unsatisfactory response, but swallowed it quickly. Itachi is Itachi, after all. If he didn't want to talk, then so be it. 'I need you to stand still.' The words were spoken nonchalantly, as if he was asking her to pass the salt, but she felt her stomach do a flip in anxiety. Obeying his command and the feeling in her gut, her limbs became as heavy as lead as she froze in place. He nodded once in confirmation, before narrowing his eyes at something just over her shoulder._

_Akima had to stop herself from turning to look and see what it was. A prickly sensation on her neck yearned to be soothed, but it was made 10 times worse simply because she knew she couldn't scratch it._

_A loud hissing noise broke through the silence, and Akima closed her eyes as soon as she felt their cool, smooth bodies brush past her feet. Behind her, she distinctly identified the shrill screams of Orochimaru and inwardly shivered. Even if she had been allowed to watch, she wasn't sure if she could have stomached the sight. _

_After about a half hour of the torture, even Akima was getting annoyed. Just listening to Orochimaru screech his agony to the dark world encompassing them was getting just a little bit boring. Seventy-two hours of this? There was no way she could even stay awake that long. _

_As if sensing her thoughts, which he probably was, Itachi abruptly ceased the snakes' biting and called them off, finally allowing Orochimaru to collapse in a heap. _

Almost immediately the surroundings faded out and Akima felt a brief sense of zero-g as her eyes adjusted to the stone walls of Orochimaru's lair. She took in and relished the sight of Orochimaru, face-down on the ground, also taking note of the defeated and probably dead Kimimaro farther off, next to a rather exhausted Naruto. Kabuto seemed to have mysteriously disappeared, while Gaara was leaning nonchalantly against a nearby wall next to Killua. Sasuke was in the far corner, still out cold. She smiled slightly before closing her eyes as the ground rushed up to meet her. The battle was over...

But the hard part was about to begin. Akima didn't know that, of course, and she was blissfully unaware of anything besides the fact that the ground was very comfortable, though a bit cold.

Itachi let out a small sigh, closing his eyes so that they could momentarily rest. They felt dry and itchy, and copying Akima seemed like a good idea all of a sudden. But being Itachi, there were certain things that had to be done first.

He looked across the room to Naruto. "Stay here," he commanded. Naruto nodded slowly. He didn't feel like moving anyway. Itachi looked at him for a moment, and Naruto had the feeling that all his secrets were slowly pumping out of his head. He breathed a small sigh of relief when the pressure lifted as the red eyes moved to the pile of rubble beside him, where Kimimaro's arm protruded, white bones still extended grotesquely. "That one is not finished yet." With those words, Itachi turned and melted into the shadows.

Naruto turned and half-heartedly poked at Kimimaro's hand. Nothing happened. Naruto shook his head, his blue eyes dark and clouded. "Pretending won't help anymore, though you could have fooled me," he muttered quietly. "Mind as well get up."

A few seconds passed by until the stones shifted as Kimimaro sat up. His eyes were half-closed, and he grimaced as he leaned back against the wall, the torn scab forming over his back where the Rasengan had tunneled through his spine. Again there was silence.

"My master is gone." Kimimaro said suddenly, startling Naruto from his half-conscious state. He gave an irritated stare at the bloody white bone user next to him.

"Looks that way," replied Naruto, casting a disgusted glare at the fallen snake sennin.

"In that case, my reason for living is gone." Kimimaro replied dryly. He shakily held up a hand with the bones extended, aiming the sharp tips towards his already bleeding chest. It was instantly whacked away by Naruto, who had actually arisen in anger.

"Don't be so stupid!" he growled, before falling to the floor. "Be glad you actually had a precious person at all! Look back at your memories with no regrets, and go on with life. There are people out there much more deserving of your devotion than him."

Kimimaro was silent, and after a moment of observing the now panting boy in front of him, closed his eyes and surrendered himself to unconsciousness. On the other side of the room, Killua's nose twitched as he inhaled the well-known scent of blood. He instantly sat up, totally disregarding the deep wounds that had barely caked themselves shut with scabs. Taking in the sight of the battle-torn room and its various occupants scattered around in tired heaps, he turned to Gaara, his eyes becoming larger by the second.

"Did I seriously miss everything?"

Itachi watched the ANBU creep through the trees toward the battlefield where the Sound nin had fought the Akatsuki. The entire landscape had been remodeled; trees and bushes were tattered and flattened, some parts of the cliff walls had fallen down in landslides. But the most prominent feature of the battlefield was the death toll. Ninjas lay in bloody pools, their bodies tattered and their limbs missing. A fair amount of Sound shinobi still stood, tottering around in the field of death, trying to find the living among the corpses.

Itachi scanned the area as the ANBU did, searching for the Akatsuki. He saw no traces of the trademark black-and-red cloaks. Apparently the ANBU didn't either, for after conversing quietly among themselves, all except one jumped down to converse with the left over Sound. Itachi took the chance to walk up behind the one remaining ANBU. This one had a bird mask, with two jagged red lines under the eyeholes. He stiffened when he noticed the presence behind him.

"What is your purpose?" the ANBU said bravely. The chakra behind him was very close, and enormously powerful. _'An Akatsuki member?' _he thought to himself, readying himself for the inevitable battle.

"Approximately one mile to the northwest of here, you will find a large tree with a mansion in its roots. That has been Orochimaru's hideout for many years now. Inside, there are Konoha ninja needing medical treatment." Itachi said emotionlessly, his eyes burning holes into the back of the ANBU's head.

The ANBU confirmed this information with a curt nod of the head. "We'll check it out. Why are you telling us this?" He still had not turned around.

Itachi ran past the ninja and jumped down into the battlefield without answering. Staring after the red and black blur for a short moment, the ANBU ran after his teammates to tell them what he had heard. Staring after him for a moment, he returned his gaze to the carpet of dead that surrounded him, bodies lying so thickly that those that had been lucky enough to survive were not likely to be found.

It was sheer chance that Itachi ran across a Sound ninja that was not only alive, but also tough enough to speak coherently.

"What happened to the Akatsuki members? Why did they withdraw?" he demanded, his tone harsh. The Sound ninja raised his head to see who was talking to him before letting it drop in utter defeat. He couldn't fight anyone at his moment, much less the infamous Uchiha prodigy.

He sighed as he contemplated his broken legs. It wasn't everyday that when one of your comrades falls in battle, he jerks right up again and starts attacking his own side. The Akatsuki member that had caused it had been nearby, Haru the necromancer. The deep purple chakra that enclosed his hands burned ever higher as more people fell and rose again, fell and rose again. He had dropped back with a small group and planned an attack against that sole Akatsuki member, and after many tries in which his legs had been snapped, managed to take him down by driving several kunai deep into his chest. A soon as that had happened, all the zombies had returned to being dead, and the Akatsuki had taken Haru and withdrawn.

"One of their members, the necromancer, was severely injured. Without all the zombies to distract us from the few Akatsuki members out there, we could have overwhelmed them, so they retreated. But it was not a victory..." The Sound ninja's reply was solemn and to-the-point. He figured that the Uchiha would stomp his life out now, and didn't relish the idea of waiting around for it. He closed his eyes, accepting his fate.

The blow never came, and after waiting impatiently, he opened his eyes to find that his life had been spared. Itachi was gone.

A week later, Akima awoke to find herself in a foreign place. She was in a white room, in a bed with white sheets. It looked, smelled, and felt like a hospital. Akima hated hospitals. She shuddered to think of how many people must have died in this bed, how many had soiled these sheets with blood. And then, of course, was the overwhelming stench of antiseptic and the nurses who really couldn't care less whether you were comfortable or not and the phony doctors who simply wanted to drain away your money as they found more and more fatal errors in your body that required vastly expensive and unnecessary operations and drugs.

She shook her head as she tried to get rid of these thoughts. First things first, she had to escape. She jumped out of bed and quickly made her way over to the window, stumbling slightly as the blood rushed to her head. Where was Itachi? Aren't you supposed to look after your subordinates?

The window revealed her location as Konoha, as the four heads built in resemblance to Mt. Everest stared down at their village. The town below was bustling with activity and Akima watched curiously as parents and children, many of them shinobi, ran around in the market buying and selling various items and foods. Alas, that world was closed off to her, for the window was locked and would not break. There was a faint feel of chakra to it.

Giving up on that, Akima crossed to the door and tried again with little success. Apparently Konoha didn't trust her. _'With good reason,' _she added. _'I wouldn't trust me either.' _

'_**Who would trust you?'**_

'_Hey, you're going to just talk to me anytime now, Akitora?' _

'_**Akitora? That's my name?'**_

'_Yeah, I figured it made sense and all. Autumn tiger? You're a part of me, so I took part of my name and just added it to what you are, a tiger. Aki-tora.'_

'_**Hm, ok. That's pretty good, I guess.'**_

'_Better be. Ok, now help me get out of here.'_

'_**Where are you planning on going?'**_

'_Out. I'm going to find Itachi. Quick, before someone comes!'_

As the orange chakra flowed into her, Akima and lifted her head and closed her eyes to savor the feeling of power. Then she smirked as she put a fist through the doorway, smashing it to smithereens.

Outside, an ANBU immediately tackled her, but she used Kawarimi to switch with a nearby nurse and escaped as a resounding slap echoed around the corridor. With absolutely no idea of where she was going, and the ANBU shouting an alarm behind her, she barreled through one of the patient's rooms to run straight into Naruto. Up in an instant she yelled, "Bye!" and flashed a quick smile to him and the other occupants of the room, which were Shikamaru, Neji, Lee, and Sasuke, the latter two in bed as they were injured.

"Akima!" Naruto yelled after her, rushing to the window. She turned and waved before jumping across the rooftops towards the outskirts of the village. He turned around and looked back at everyone in bewilderment, which they mirrored.

"What was up with-" he started before dodging an ANBU that jumped out the window after Akima, closely pursued by two more. "-that..." he finished lamely. The others shrugged.

As Akima rushed up the wall that surrounded Konoha, she had to wonder about what she was doing. Where was she going? Why did she suddenly feel like leaving so suddenly? What was drawing her out here like a powerful magnet?

The answer soon became known as she cleared the top of the wall. Dodging a guard and kicking another in the chin, Akima flipped off the wall only to realize that it was a rather long way down. She silently cursed her stupidity and closed her eyes as she braced herself for impact.

However, she fell into something that was not nearly as uncomfortable as she suspected the ground was. Opening her eyes, she saw that Itachi had caught her in his arms.

Since she seemed to have gone into shock and didn't say anything for several seconds, Itachi gently lowered her to her feet. She then saw Killua with his skateboard in hand.

"Yo," he said, waving a hand and grinning cheekily.

"Hey..." she replied a little uncertainly. The ANBU above her had, understandably, hesitated before dropping after her. They were probably off to tell the Hokage about the Akatsuki members right outside the wall. "So, I guess I'm still a subordinate?" she said, smirking.

Itachi nodded. "You can't get away from me." He smirked before turning around and disappearing into the shadows. Akima stuck out her tongue at his back, rather childishly she had to admit, but it was fun to be stupid sometimes.

"Itachi, Akima stuck her tongue out at you!" Killua cheerily shouted.

"What the hell, baka!" yelled Akima as she turned and swiped at the white-haired boy. "Gimme that skateboard, I need to beat you over the head with it!"

"Oi, oi, cut it out!"

"Shut up, brat! Take your stupid punishment!"

Itachi glanced back at the strange scene and turned back, slowly shaking his head in amusement at their antics. Then Killua gave an extra-hard tug on his skateboard, but overbalanced over a mischievous root, sending it flying into Itachi's head. There was a stunned silence from both Akatsuki, as Akima started laughing her head off.

"Don't laugh, idiot!" Killua hissed loudly, bonking her on the head with a fist. "He'll kill us both!" But Akima couldn't stop and Killua cast one fearful glance at the, as always, expressionless Itachi before attempting to slink away. Itachi threw the skateboard at him, thunking him neatly on the head. This made Akima laugh even harder, clutching her ribs and hyperventilating as she tried to stop.

ANBU burst out of the bushes and everyone started running, Akima bent double and gasping for air. With a sigh of exasperation, Itachi grabbed her arm to help her along, a nerve working in his forehead.

'_I need a vacation.'_

THE END! Maybe. I did leave space for a sequel didn't I? But not for awhile, definitely not. I simply won't have time. I again apologize for the extreme suckiness. Everything at the end was all rushed because I just wanted the darn thing to come to a close, dammit. Before a sequel comes out (if ever) I'll need to totally revise this story. All the bad parts and stupid parts and basically everything.

Thank you for reading! I still appreciate reviews! Even if it has been months and months since I finished this story and it doesn't matter anymore, I still appreciate reviews! They're my anti-drug! Ok, that was cheesy. But seriously, they do make me feel happy.

Thank you everybody! Long live Itachi! Cookies for everyone! Keep watching Naruto no matter how sucky the latest arcs that have nothing to do with anything are! (Or reading, in which case you wouldn't have to put up with all the suckiness)

Ok, this is bye for real, now. Goodbye, maybe we'll meet again someday!


	22. Akima 2

I said I would upload what I had if even one person asked. A couple years later, someone finally did. Looking back on this bit of story I wrote, I don't really want to post it. It's crude, it's unfinished... and I know I'll never take the time to complete it, much less have the time to do so, even if I wanted to. But here it is, because I said I would. Please don't expect more. I haven't watched Naruto in months, and it doesn't look like I'll be able to for a while longer. Also, please don't judge me on this work. I'd like to say I've improved, at least a little, since then. Without further ado... here's the horribly named Akima 2.  


Akima 2

Akima sighed softly as she regarded the impassable dark trees. The heady scent of freshly spilt blood weaved through her nose and she exhaled sharply, ridding herself of the choking smell. _I'll have to start over again._Brown eyes coolly observed the moonlight that barely slipped through the gray clouds, was filtered again by the tall pines, and then the few rays that colored the darkened ground a luminescent blue in small blotches. Her whole body twitched as a squirrel suddenly scampered through some dead leaves, sharply cutting through the over-riding silence.

She was about to relax when a sudden presence prickled the hair at the back of her neck. After a moment, a chillingly familiar voice hovered in the thick air. "You're so jumpy. I don't know how you made it so far."

She smiled slightly. "Me neither. Just lucky I guess."

A different voice called out from her right. "No. You were good before. But then something changed." Akima shifted her feet and closed her eyes, pushing down her memories.

"It doesn't matter now, anyway," she commented offhandedly. "What's done is done." A few seconds passed in silence as each person reflected on the past events.

The first person spoke again, a little uncertainly, it seemed. "You could still come back. I'm sure you could be forgiven." If Akima didn't know better, she would have mistaken the quiver in that voice to be hope.

"I don't think I could take another second in that place." There was a deep-seeded hatred that forced each word out like the strike of a snake, swift and venomous. Her hand gripped the kunai tighter. "And I don't want to talk to you anymore, either."

"Afraid you might change your mind?" The two people spoke at the same time. Akima flinched, and ran for it, kicking up dirt and molding leaves behind her. The two did not give chase. She could feel their eyes on her back as she ran, wild and determined, through the foreboding trees.

"A super S-class mission..."

Naruto's eyes bulged in wonder before an overly-large grin spread itself across his whiskered cheeks.

Tsunade would have smacked him upside the head if she had not been so worried. For the past year or so, she had attempted to prevent the unruly Chuunin from getting into any truly dangerous missions, but desperate times call for desperate measures and skilled Konoha ninjas were in ever-decreasing supply these days. If it wasn't for that clash between the Sound and the Akatsuki a few years back, it was entirely possible that Orochimaru would be inhabiting the very chair she was seated in now. That is, if the Hokage tower was left standing in the ensuing all-out war zone. Thankfully, this situation would never come to pass, as Orochimaru was confirmed dead and his lackeys dispersed. Akatsuki had remained immobile. Crime rates were low. Ninjas were settling down, retiring from work, and raising families in the new age of peace.

Naturally, this would be the prime time for some other power to attack. And Konoha, as much as the Godaime hated to admit it, would not be ready.

Which finally brought her to make the decision that would change Konoha forever... if it succeeded.

However... the plan had already fallen into disarray.

Originally, it was to be a top-secret operation. Originally, Naruto and Sasuke were never supposed to know.

Originally...

So when the blonde baka and his angsty best friend came to her (barely two hours after she had set the plan in motion, nonetheless!) and demanded to be included on the mission team, she had been... surprised.

How could something so important, so secret, be made known in two hours?!

"Baa-chan? We're coming too, right?" Naruto's fake grin had frozen in place, expectantly. He was taller now, though still a scarce inch below his rival. With his height also came a cold, calculating intelligence that hid behind his trademark smiles and atrociously loud laughs. He still acted the idiot, wore his horribly orange jumpsuit, cut his hair the same, and kept his friends.

Well, the majority of them. Sakura had become a teacher's assistant in lieu of going on to Chuunin level... though she had professed to the Godaime that she would like to become a real teacher one day and would take the Chuunin Exam then. Ino only worked part-time as a ninja, since she had to take over the flower shop ever since her mother died while undercover in the Stone Country. Naruto saw them rarely, and would usually simply wave or give a nod even then. Obviously, the crush on Sakura had subsided.

"Naturally. Since her cover's blown, she has to include us, dobe." Sasuke was the same. Seriously, time had no physical effect on him besides the height change. Tsunade already had reasons to suspect he was a particularly strong breed of vampire that could stand the sunlight. He was closer than ever with Naruto, though... something she wasn't sure she approved of. It was pretty safe to say that Naruto was straight, but she was a little unsure about his pale friend... Sasuke was hard to read, mostly because he displayed all the same emotions as a brick.

"Nah, Sasuke, we have to make her think she has a choice." _That smug brat._

"Why?"

"Hmmm... something about courtesy..."

"Hn. Too late, then. We're going whether she likes it or not."

"Well yeah." Naruto adopted his thinking pose and nodded confidently. "It would probably be smart to just add us on the team, then, since we're going anyway, ne?"

Tsunade clenched her folded fingers and shot Naruto a glare strong enough to force him into silence. "How did you get this information?" she asked, her tone harsh.

Naruto's stony grin continued, and even Sasuke smirked a little. They were obviously very proud of themselves. She took her earlier comment back. _Those smug_brats

"Ah, it was actually pretty interesting, baa-chan... You see, the leader thought that only two Jounin wasn't enough..."

"So he asked us to ask you to let us join." Sasuke continued. "And considering the type of mission this is, we should have been involved from the first place. However, we can see why you didn't want to let us know, so..."

"We just wanted to let you know why we're not going to be around Konoha until the mission has been completed." Naruto finished, his grin growing.

Tsunade stared in shock. Now the two were finishing each other's sentences! She really hoped that her suspicions were incorrect... "So you never expected me to give you permission to go. At least you're not as dense as I thought."

Naruto's grin faded into something that could easily be comparable to a smirk. _Spending way too much time around Sasuke, aren't you, Naruto?_

"Of course, baa-chan. The Akatsuki wants the Kyubi. Sending me there, even on a diplomatic mission, would be suicide for me. And sending Sasuke to Itachi's place of residence... the same result."

"Naruto..." Tsunade sighed. "As Hokage, you know that I cannot risk-"

Sasuke cut in. "Which is why we are not expecting you to _let _us, we're just letting you know what happened when you discover that neither of us are here. You can send ANBU after us if you want, but..."

"Hinata-chan and Kiba just sent us word that the Hidden Rain, Cloud, and Stone villages have strengthened their alliance... and pooled their resources. You do remember the bitter defeat of the Cloud, don't you? I would assume they believe revenge is in order. Plus, the Rain and Stone are in dire need of resources to hold up their economy... resources that the Cloud possesses. Not a favorable chain of occurrences for Konoha, ne, baa-chan?"

Tsunade visibly tensed and suddenly stood up, slamming her hands upon the paperwork-covered desk. "You will leave tomorrow morning with the rest of the group. Accomplish this mission in the quickest manner possible. And please don't let personal problems decrease our chances of success, Sasuke. The importance of this mission has just increased tenfold. And Naruto..." Her eyes softened, though the sharp quality of her words did not. "_Never_ go anywhere alone."

Naruto pouted, while Sasuke did not react. "Baa-chan, I can take care of myself. But thanks." The two shinobi disappeared in a collective poof of smoke.

The room was silent as Tsunade collapsed into her chair. _Not this soon. I expected this, but not this soon. _She put her head in her hands, then jerked up and called for Shizune. _I must protect this village. Even if chances are slim... I will keep trying._

Shikamaru was silently waiting at the training grounds when Naruto and Sasuke poofed into existence. "And how did it go?" the shadow user drawled from his cloud watching position on the grass.

"We're coming!" Naruto answered excitedly, skipping around. "Super A-class!"

"Oi, it's still a top-secret mission, don't go around telling everyone," Shikamaru said, returning his gaze to the sky. After a moment's hesitation, he added, "It's good that you're coming, though."

"Apparently, we're leaving tomorrow morning instead of three days from now, too." Sasuke shook his head, hands stuffed in his pockets. "That will prove difficult... since Lee hasn't even come back from investigating their last hide-out. It's unlikely that they are still there."

There was a rush of wind, and Lee suddenly appeared, panting hard. "Correct, Sasuke-kun, the hide-out in the middle of the lake no longer exists. It has been cleared out."

_How convenient,_thought Naruto. "Your timing is as impeccable as always, Fuzzy Eyebrows."

"Indeed." Lee made a sparkle with his teeth. Ping! "My only wish would be to accompany you on this mission. However, someone has to stay behind to protect our homes." He dropped his head sadly. "I must go report to the Hokage now, but please be careful with your flames of youth!" There was a rush of wind, and he was gone.

"Did he just tell us not to die?" asked Naruto, cocking an eyebrow in an un-Naruto-like fashion.

"Yes. Yes he did," replied Shikamaru, bored. "Never mind him, we have to figure out where to start looking since our time has been cut short. The Akatsuki are always in the shadows of big events, so we should start searching around the countries preparing for war."

"Stone, Rain, and Cloud. They're in the same area, but that's still a lot of space to cover. Too much," Sasuke said. "We'd need more time than we have."

"Start with Cloud, and then we can work our way through. Plus, in the event of the failure to find them, we can still spy." Naruto folded his arms in response.

"Then, should we meet up with our spies there, specifically Hinata-chan and Kiba, or avoid them? I'd say avoid because you never know when one of them is going to be forced to reveal information to the Cloud..."

"Avoid," decided Shikamaru. Sasuke nodded his assent.

"In that case..." Naruto began, gazing up at a sparrow that had just taken flight. "What are we going to do about Neji?"

Neji's hair swept through the air like a whip as he gentle fisted imaginary enemies. If his hair was longer, he could totally pwn bad guys with it. Unfortunately, Neji's taijutsu style of choice was jyuuken, so see Ino for information on fighting with your hair.

So anyways, Neji was totally thrashing those invisible ninjas. Inside, he was angsting and had this whole inner monologue going where he told each of the bad guys that they were so pitiful and were fated to be defeated by the all-powerful Neji-sama before he mercilessly poked them in all the right places. Yeah, Neji's pretty sweet. But we got off track again.

Neji was training, because now that he had finally become a Jounin, he wanted to keep his lithe, sinewy, feminine body in shape. I'm sorry, that was uncalled for. Neji is awesome, and male.

Really.

He's about as male as Orochimaru. Who isn't male, though he may have been at some point in time. Maybe.

Sigh.

Let's do a scene change, because this isn't going anywhere.

WHOOSH

Kiba tasted dirt. It wasn't a nice taste. The Cloud nin pressed her knee deep into the small of his back, roughly twining his wrists and fingers together to prevent any jutsus he might try to activate while his hands were tied. When she was done and his hands had become mittens, her agonizing pressure was lifted and he could properly take a breath again, albeit also taking in a mouthful of the said dirt that his face was in. Of course, he was only allowed one second to rejuvenate his lungs before the back of his jacket was hauled into the air and his feet scrabbled for purchase on the ground. Still with a firm hand locked onto his back, she set him on his feet and commanded him to walk forward.

"Akamaru..." he coughed out, tasting something other than dirt in his mouth and really beginning to feel the broken ribs jabbing his lungs. He attempted to turn to where his faithful companion had fallen, but the Cloud nin kept him facing front.

"I have your dog," she replied. "Is the famous Inuzuka nose so filled with clotted blood that it cannot even detect the presence of his lifelong friend?"

Kiba chose to ignore the derogatory comment. After all, she held both of their lives in the palm of her hand, quite literally. With luck, after she turned them in, the Alliance Council might give them both a quick death. Fleetingly, his thoughts turned to Hinata and her presumed capture. Maybe her situation was slightly better than his own.

Or maybe not.

Another nin came into view, this time wearing the insignia of the Stone. He carried the blue-haired female under one arm as if she was made of straw. Hinata was out cold. From the looks of her limp, bloodied arms, they had been caught in some kind of rock jutsu and crushed, Lee-style. So much for getting rescued.

Well, at least they had managed to send a runner to Konoha with all of the latest information considering the Alliance Council. Now, all that was left was a bit of interrogation, some torture, and then eventual death for the good of the village. Life was good. His purpose had been fulfilled.

He was very glad he chose this career path.

----------------------

Chapter 1

At first, there was nothing.

Then, there was something. Specifically, the uncomfortable feeling of suffocation under ones' own covers. With a little gasp for air, Akima tumbled headfirst out of her exquisitely adorned four-poster bed, both hands hitting the floor with a loud smack. Her tangled legs kicked wildly at the clingy bedspread until they came free and she could wheelbarrow her way further onto the cool tiles, before collapsing amid a flurry of soft curses.

"Not exactly proficient in escaping bindings, are you?"

"Quiet Kisame, I'm plenty proficient." Akima said as she rolled over on to her feet and stood up in one fluid movement, proceeding to knock the antique-looking but actually dirt-cheap bedside lamp onto the floor. It didn't shatter as you were probably expecting, but instead bounced up and down before rolling around in a circle. Let me explain why. In Akima's room, everything was made of something non-breakable. The lamp was plastic, the glass in the mirror was shatterproof, and lots of squishy cushions of varying colors and shapes had been thrown everywhere to reduce fall damage. Most of them simply hindered the ability of the extremely, excruciatingly, dangerously clumsy seventeen-year-old to move around without tripping a few times and actually falling at least once a day. "I've learned all those basic jutsus and you know it... why are you in my room? While I was sleeping? That's kinda creepy, you know..."

Kisame rolled his sharky eyes along with his head. Akima couldn't help but stare at the gill tattoos along his cheekbones as he did so. Well... she assumed they were tattoos. Otherwise it would be difficult for him to breathe while on land. Or _maybe... _he was amphibious and could breathe on land with human lungs and swim underwater with his gills! That would be awesome. Unfortunately, she was brought back to reality when Kisame replied with an evil grin, "Your chakra seemed stressed. I was going to watch you be defeated by the bed sheets."

It was Akima's turn to do the head and eye roll thing. "Thank you for your concern, now shoo." Kisame snorted and allowed himself to be shooed out the door, closing it behind the whisk of his cloak.

"Lunch in half an hour!" he called through the closed door. Akima responded with two sound thumps on the door before returning to the task at hand.

After successfully dressing herself in a plain shirt and shorts and making it out the door, Akima wandered down the stairs to the kitchen area. Well, they called it that, but really it was just a long table and a bunch of chairs. Gone were the refrigerator and the counters present in their last kitchen when Akima had first come to the Akatsuki. In fact, the entire base of operations had moved, as it does every year or so, depending on the level of suspicion of passer-by and after any especially important events.

The former entrance located in the lonely cliff in the middle of the lake had been completely destroyed, burned out, and left to the inspection of the neighboring villages' ninja. After all, it didn't matter if they knew where the Akatsuki had _been _as long as they didn't know where they were now, or were going to be later. The present Akatsuki were hiding out in a homemade underground labyrinth about a mile from a popular traveling road connecting the Hidden Stone and the Hidden Cloud. Interestingly enough, the area was also inhabited by several different raider gangs who would attack and rob the merchants along the road, providing perfect cover for the Akatsuki to slay whomever they wished, whenever they wished. However, it was also altogether more dangerous, as some of the bandits were outcast ninjas and quite intelligent. Sooner or later, one was bound to stumble across an Akatsuki member or to accidentally discover the large stone that was not as solid as one would originally be inclined to think it was. And when that happened, there would be a large, bloody mess to clean up and probably a disbandment of the group for at least a month or so to throw off any trackers.

On top of the table were a few brown bags that Akima inspected for edibles. "Beer, beer, beer... wine... and... a can of tuna." She wrinkled her nose and sighed. "This is ridiculous. We don't even have any bread. Or water. Or a can opener."

"What would we need those things for?" asked Kisame as he strolled down the stairs, his sword uncharacteristically absent. Ignoring the pained look Akima shot at him, he calmly sliced the tuna can in half and tossed one side to her. "Do you have some kind of problem with dead fish flesh?"

Akima stared at the jagged edges of the half cylinder in her hands along with its mushy contents. "You remember our 'conversation' about sushi," she commented offhandedly, using a finger to scoop out the stuff that some people called food and bringing it closer to her eye.

Kisame scoffed and slurped out the fish flesh in one easy suck. "Yeah. Let's not bring that up again." Ignoring the disgusted look Akima sent him, he crumpled his half of the tin can easily into a little ball and threw it back into the brown bag from whence it came. Akima took one more look at the gook on her finger before sticking it in her mouth and swallowing quickly.

"Bleah. It's all yours." She tossed the other half of the can at the sharkman before retreating to the stairs.

As each step passed under her feet, she found herself reminiscing. Don't we all love flashbacks...

"Ok. It looks like, you have almost no fighting ability." Killua grinned and put a hand behind his head. "Sorry."

"Jerk." Akima slugged him with a book on taijutsu and strolled away unhappily, hands stuffed in pockets.

And that is the end of the flashback! Yay!

"Stupid Killua," Akima grumbled to herself. But really, what he said was true. She supposed a couple years of training wasn't anything compared to the whole lifespan of preparation that most people had... plus her complete lack of natural ability. And those stupid morals that had been hammered into her mind back home. Hitting people is wrong! Use your words to indirectly cause pain that lasts much longer than a bruise. Wow, that was pretty deep, people. I might just quote myself.


End file.
